Shattered Selves
by ShadowVulpi
Summary: "Find the others. Become one." Those were her instructions. She had to find her other selves in the other dimensions if she wanted to prevent the entire multiverse from collapsing. It seemed simple. All her other selves would surely understand what's at stake and come with her. Why wouldn't they?
1. I Need You To Come With Me

"You can't protect yourself from a frontal attack like that. Look at how exposed your stomach is."

A Weavile kicked the Snover square in the gut before he had a chance to give her a rebuttal. He immediately fell backwards and let out a sharp inhale. He then clutched his stomach with his thick paws and rolled onto his side.

There was a flash, and then the Weavile was suddenly looming over the Snover, pushing her claws against his throat. No blood pooled around her claws, but she knew her message had reached the Snover at her mercy. She could feel him shuddering.

The Weavile kept her glance on the Snover for a moment longer before she removed her claw from his throat.

"Try again," she told him as she backed away. "Find a stance that'll protect you from a frontal assault."

"In… In a moment…" the Snover wheezed out. "I… I can't breathe… too well."

The Weavile sighed, but knew that nothing else could be done. She had knocked the wind out of him after all. That was always something quite difficult to recover from unless the opponent had thick hides protecting their organs or lacked any organs in the first place like the ghost-types. So, after taking note of the Snover's raspy breaths, she looked at the room the two found themselves in.

They were in a circular room, a section of a dojo that the Weavile was given to train other Pokémon. There was nothing in her training room, unlike the other trainers' rooms. She had left the ground barren and covered in the dirt that had been there ever since the dojo had been built and left the walls as a blank, white canvas. The only notable aspect of her room was the hole in the ceiling that allowed the evening sun's waning rays to seep inside the room. The other dojo rooms sometimes had ivy flood into the room through the hole or covered it up with glass panes, but the Weavile had left it alone. She had never minded the rain that flooded into her room during the storms. It had always made for very interesting training sessions.

"Why… why do you have to go… all out, Master Glace?" the Snover asked. "Why can't you… go easy on me? You know… I'm not as strong as you."

The Weavile brought her gaze back over to the Snover to see that he was still on the ground, panting. He hadn't moved since she last looked at him.

"First of all, I'm not using my full power on you," Glace answered. "I'm pulling my punches. If I wasn't, I would have slammed into that wall behind you."

"Oh geez…"

"But to answer your real question, it's because you've reached the point where you can take it. You came to me wanting to get stronger, and you don't get stronger by having me go easy on you. I have to push you every time you start learning to tolerate the strength I use against you. I told you the moment I started training you that I would be this way."

"I know… but I didn't think it'd hurt so much. I feel like you broke something…"

Glace highly doubted that she had broken anything in her student, but didn't bother to make a comment on it. She only watched him rise to his feet. He staggered for a moment, almost falling back onto the ground the moment he stood back up, but he was able to remain on his feet just before his weakness could overwhelm him.

"Are you ready to try again?" she asked.

The Snover nodded. He crossed his thick arms over his body once again, though this time making sure that he covered his stomach as well. Glace noted that he was still shuddering and that there was a mark on the spot where she had kicked him.

"Better," she said. "It'll be more difficult for a fighting-type to kick you in a vulnerable spot now. They'll only be able to attack your arms now."

"And that won't hurt as much as being kicked in the stomach, right?" the Snover asked.

"No," Glace replied.

Glace then shot forward on her swift feet, and then before the Snover could even see her, she kicked him right where his arms intersected. He flew back for a moment before crashing back down, sending dust up into the air.

"But it still hurts," she then said. "It only makes it so that you can get back up again without a moment's delay. A blow to the arm is more bearable than a blow to the chest or stomach. You can shake it off much more easily."

The Snover didn't bother to get back up. He only remained where he was, rubbing his arms with his paws gingerly. Glace sighed and shook her head.

"We're done for today," she stated. "Get yourself some orans from Remedy in the refreshment area. Come back whenever you want to see me again. You know when I'm here."

"Okay… thank you, Master Glace."

Glace didn't say anything in return. She only strolled past the downed Snover and made her way to the makeshift door that was nothing more than a rectangular hole in the wall with a red drape to separate the room from the rest of the dojo. Glace pulled back the drape with her claws before exiting her room.

She soon found herself in the main lobby of the dojo. Seven other makeshift doors were within the walls surrounding her, leading to the other trainer rooms and other services that the dojo provided. Each one was covered with a drape just like Glace's room, preventing outsiders from peering into the training sessions. That had always been the policy at the dojo; grant the students privacy from others. No one wanted others to see them in their moments of struggling.

Against the back wall, in between two doors, was a doorway that held no drapes to shield it from onlookers. That was the leisure room, the area where all of the dojo masters went when they had no students to train and wanted a few moments of relaxation. It was a spacious room, almost half as large as the main lobby itself, and had a number of seats, tables, and other such furniture for the trainers to lounge around in. There was always at least one Pokémon in that room, either napping or having a meal break.

The current moment was no exception, though there were far more Pokémon in the room than she had ever seen before. The Weavile couldn't help but make her way over to doorway and peer inside of the large room. As soon as she did, she realized that many of the Pokémon gathered within were dojo trainers, along with the other employees, such as the Greninja that was the first to greet and assist the students they all trained. There were some other Pokémon that Glace didn't recognize as well, such as a young Pikachu and Torchic playing some sort of game with sticks and leaves, a Jigglypuff slumbering at a table, or an Ekans and Seviper intertwining their tails together. There was even a Noivern roaming about the party, eying Pokémon for a few moments before moving onto another group of Pokémon and doing the same thing. No one seemed to notice the Noivern, as if it were a ghost invisible to all.

Everyone was chatting amongst themselves, or eating from the large assortments of foods on the tables. No one seemed to notice Glace standing there in the doorway, watching it all from afar.

"Well well, if it isn't Glace."

Glace saw something in the corner of her eye. She snapped her head to the side to find that there was now a Marowak in her presence. He was using his bone club as a staff to lean against, all the while giving her an amused stare. Glace was certain he was smiling from beneath his mask as well.

The tenseness in her muscles eased when she fully saw the Marowak. He was another dojo trainer; he was one of the first trainers she met when she first began to work there. They had never talked much, but his name was the only dojo trainer's name she knew. She had never bothered to remember anyone else's names.

"Why's everyone in there?" she asked.

"Because we're having an anniversary party!" the Marowak answered with a small laugh. "We've been here in Granite Town for ten years. Having a dojo around that long is pretty impressive, if I do so myself. So why not celebrate for such a great milestone?"

So that was the reason why. Glace had completely forgotten that the dojo had been around for so long. In truth, she had never paid much attention to the history of the dojo or anything regarding its foundation. All she knew was that she had joined nine years ago when there had been an opening for a new trainer. Everything else she had never bothered to pay any mind.

"So are you going to join or not?" the Marowak then asked. "It'd be nice to have you around. Maybe I can even know what you're like when you're not throwing your students all over your training room. Surely there's more to you than being some nonchalant sadist. I want to know what's going on inside of that cold head of yours."

Glace scoffed. Of course, that was what parties were for. Besides having a wonderful time, it was also about mingling amongst your peers. The moment she put her foot into the doorway, Pokémon would try to talk to her. They would try to get into her head and understand why she was the way she was.

They would want to know who she was before she had become a dojo trainer and where she had come from.

"I'm not going to your party, Mar," Glace answered. "You can all have fun without me."

"Aw what? Why not? It'll be great!"

"I don't think it will be. I was never a social Pokémon before. There's no reason why I should start being one now."

"I don't think I believe that. I think that you're capable of being a social Pokémon that can talk to just about anyone, otherwise you wouldn't be a trainer. Because every day you have to talk to someone. You have to teach them how to make themselves stronger and what they might be doing wrong."

"Being a good teacher doesn't mean anything."

"Well even if it didn't, you're still a Weavile. Isn't it in your instincts to be able to cooperate with other Weavile to make perfect hunts? Like don't all of you work in some big pack and give each other signals so you can kill Piloswine?"

Glace saw an image in her mind's eye. She saw herself leading four smaller Weavile through a snow-covered forest. They were following the footprints of a large creature. Something with two long claws protruding out of each of its feet. Something that was most definitely one of the strange, ice-type Sandslash that roamed in very particular forests of the region.

She knew the Sandslash had been there recently. The footprints were quite fresh. If the pack cooperated with her, they could all have a tasty Sandslash in a couple of hours. Maybe they'd even be fortunate enough to find that the Sandslash had led them straight to her den filled with her hatchling Sandshrew.

They only needed to cooperate and listen to her. They only had to obey her orders precisely and not deviate from them in the slightest.

Glace stopped herself before her strange train of thought could go any further. She frowned as she glanced back at the party, finding that nothing had changed since the last moment she had eyed the crowd. Everyone was still talking amongst themselves, sharing stories, partaking in cold gossip, or spouting endless details about their lives and all of the grand things they had done and how great they were as Pokémon.

"Have fun at your party, Mar," Glace finally said before she turned away from the crowd. "Try not to stay up too late."

And then, without waiting for a response, she left the dojo.

* * *

It was dark by the time Glace made it home. The sun had long set during her walk from the dojo to her home, blanketing the little mountain town with calming darkness. She hadn't seen any Pokémon as she weaved her way through the town to her home, but that wasn't something terribly surprising. Here, not many Pokémon stayed out past evening. All of the shops closed up by the time the darkness snuffed out the last ray of sun, leaving nothing to do when night settled upon the land. There was not even a single torch set up to brighten the roads nor an illuminous orb.

Everyone stayed inside after dark, no exceptions. It had been that way the entire nine years Glace had lived in Granite Town, all to avoid the nocturnal ferals that would climb down the mountains and roam about the streets. Dark-types were usually the creatures, such as Mightyena and Absol, though there was the occasional Ursaring. All of them were a Pokémon no one wanted to face.

Of course, Glace had never feared them. If she ever saw one during her walks home, she would hide behind a tree or scurry home long before they could ever detect her. Though fearsome to many, they were actually very predictable once you saw them enough times. Once you saw the pattern, you always knew how to deal with them.

When Glace reached her home, a simple wooden cottage that was nearly identical to all the homes of the village, she quietly opened the door before going inside and shutting the door behind her. She found herself in the massive room that made up the entirety of her home. The dimming light of a week-old illuminating orb on a table in the center of the room barely alit the room with a turquoise hue, but it was enough for Glace. Even with that meager amount of light, she could see everything with the same amount of clarity as she could in the daylight. She could see the empty stone chimney in the corner, the bed resting against the opposite wall, the basket of berries resting near the table, and the basin of water near the bed.

But mostly, she saw the pile of wood stacked near the chimney. The moment she saw it, she made her way toward the pile. Many would have presumed it was firewood to be used during the frigid winters, but Glace had no need for warmth in the winter. She was perfectly fine with the cold that winter brought, even in the mountains. To her, even the harshest blizzard felt the same as a warm spring day.

When Glace reached the pile, she grabbed a piece and brought it over to the bed with her. Then she sat down and adjusted her seat, she set the wood in her lap and put one set of claws on the wood's surface.

She pressed her claws harder against the wood, sinking them deep, and then she slowly carved a shape. The sound of claws scrapping echoed throughout the house, but Glace ignored it as she continued carving away at the wood.

Within seconds, she had finished her work. There was now a picture on the surface of the wood, a crude circle within a three much larger circles. It wasn't anything particularly impressive, as any Pokémon with claws could have made the same symbol, but she had no intentions of showing this to anyone anyway. She only did this out of habit, to make sure her claws could still gouge wood as easily as they could before.

 _Make a wide circle around the prey._

When she finished creating the symbol, she made another one right next to it. This time, it was two lines running parallel to each other with a circle between them.

 _Follow the prey on both sides. Don't let it see you._

Glace flipped the board of wood over and made a new symbol. This one took longer to make, as it required more lines to carve out, but it didn't take more than ten seconds to complete the drawing. Now it was a single circle, surrounded by many jagged lines all very close to it, mere millimeters away from overlapping it.

 _Surround it and attack all at once._

A bright light suddenly went off near the window opposite of where Glace sat. She looked up from her wooden canvas just as the light faded, but she still saw the tail end of the light before it retreated back into the darkness.

Glace set the wood aside as she got up and made her way over to the window before peering out into the neighborhood.

Much to her great surprise, there was a large congregation of Pokémon outside, all of them gathered not too far away from her home. They didn't appear to be doing anything particular, only looking up at the sky and pointing at something with their paws, as well as speaking in muffled, distant voices. What they could possibly be so enthralled by, Glace didn't know. Perhaps the fabled Millennium Comet had appeared after all this time. Glace wasn't much for celestial wonders in the sky, but she could imagine how one could cause such a commotion. It was a disruption in the normally peaceful night sky, a spatial wonder that reminded those of the planet that there were things beyond that world that they could not understand.

Nonetheless, Glace knew it had to be something quite fascinating to have them all leave their homes and stand in the street when it was still dark. So, after keeping her gaze on the townsfolk for a moment longer, she looked up into the dark sky and beheld an astonishing sight.

There was a great tear in the sky that stretched for seemingly miles, as though a great hand had grabbed the very fabric that made up the sky and pulled it apart. And within that great rip in the sky, there was no darkness. There was a great mesh of various colors, all of them swirling around each other chaotically or mixing together to create brand new colors that Glace had never seen before. Great explosions of white went off within the mess of colors, and each time Glace was sure something would spill out of the hole and into the town. However, it would never happen. The flash would go off, and then the colors would continue to swirl, as if nothing had happened.

Glace found she could only stare up at the surreal wonder, unable to process what she was seeing.

It was then that Glace felt a sudden chill run down her spine. She felt something dark and heavy settle over her heart as she gazed at that tear in the sky, something that made her head spin and her claws tremble. She took in a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself, but they did nothing. Her heartbeat only quickened.

Something wasn't right. She didn't know what, but something wasn't right anymore. Something within her mind vehemently insisted that something was very wrong and that she should be very, very afraid.

Glace couldn't remember the last time she had felt like this. It had been too long since she had such an oppressive, foreboding feeling before, the kind one has when they find themselves staring up at a monstrous Pokémon about to snap its jaws over you.

She didn't know why she was feeling this way. So what if there was a tear in the sky? That didn't mean anything. There was no reason to feel as though she was gazing into death's very jaws. There was absolutely proof that the strange rift in the sky meant anything. For all she knew, it was a phenomenon that happened on the mountains in this particular part of the region. No one outside seemed to be screaming hysterically or running away.

There was a knock at the door before the dread could seep any further into Glace's mind. Her claws stopped shaking as she found herself back in reality, no longer thinking about the tear in the sky. Instead, she wondered who could possibly be at her door at this hour. Granted there were all those Pokémon outside, but they didn't seem interested in knocking on neighbor's doors.

Glace made her way over to the door. She stopped in front of it and then took in a breath and exhaled deeply. When all of the air left her lungs, she opened the door.

There was a Noivern standing on the other side of the door. Glace immediately recognized the Noivern to be the one she saw that the dojo's party. However, the Noivern no longer seemed like a nosy dragon that clearly didn't belong to the party but futilely tried to blend in anyway. There was something different about her.

Namely, Glace felt like she actually knew the Noivern now that she got a good look at her.

She couldn't recall if she had met this Noivern before. She certainly would have remembered this Noivern with the way she seemed to resist wrapping her wings around her body and had this shy smile on her face that seemed very unfit for most dragon-types. And when Glace really thought about it, she didn't think she had ever really talked to a Noivern before. She had seen a couple in her lifetime from a distance, but they were all male. None of them were female like this one.

"Hi there, Glace," the Noivern said with a wave of her claw. "I hope I didn't wake you up. I know that it's pretty late right now and I was going to wait until morning, but then I saw that huge hole in the sky and well… it made me remember we don't have a lot of time."

Glace had to resist scowling. She could feel her skin crawling.

"What are you talking about?" Glace asked as she narrowed her eyes. "And how do you even know my name?"

"I know this is going to sound crazy, but…"

The Noivern glanced behind her and seemed to notice all of the Pokémon within earshot.

"Actually, we shouldn't talk out here," she said. "We might freak everyone out. Can you let me inside?"

"I'm not letting you into my house," Glace growled. "You really think I'm going to let some stranger in here?"

"Aw come on, Glace," the Noivern pleaded. "Don't be like this. I'm not going to steal anything or hurt you. You know I won't."

Glace was about to refute the Noivern and tell her to leave, but she looked at the Noivern again and saw something in her eyes. Something familiar, something in her memories that she couldn't quite grasp. Something that told her she could trust this Noivern and that no harm would come.

The Weavile sighed and stepped out of the way.

"Alright fine, get in here," she said.

There couldn't be too much harm in letting the Noivern into her home. If she tried to steal anything, Glace knew she could easily take her down. Noivern were extremely susceptible to cold, after all. Hitting them with one measly snowball made their entire body shudder violently. Glace could only imagine what a gust of frosty air could do to a Noivern.

The Noivern's smile brightened as she hurried inside the house. Glace shut the door behind her and watched as the Noivern settled herself by the table. The Weavile then joined her and soon, the two were sitting opposite of each other, holding a gaze.

"Alright, we're inside," Glace then said. "What do you want to tell me?"

"Well, I think I should introduce myself first," the Noivern replied. "I think it's the only real way to talk about everything I wanted to tell you. So, my name is Sonata. I'm a spy for this… guild. It's really not a guild, but I'm just going to call it a guild because explaining what it actually is would take too long. I used to work there ever since I was a Noibat. Spent a good twenty three years there. I really liked being there. I'd do recon for the leader of the guild and I'd give him any information I'd find. He was happy with me and I was happy to serve him because he was such an amazing Pokémon. He was so kind and strong, and he was such a great leader. I was totally fine with working for him for the rest of my life.

"But then I saw that rip in the sky… and my whole world changed."

Sonata sighed as she fiddled with her claws for a moment. Glace noticed that they were impressively sharp, though covered in a good number of scratches. She imagined that they were like that from digging them into too many hard surfaces such as cave walls.

"I know why the sky is torn open," Sonata said quietly. "It's because all of the dimensions are starting to unravel. The fabric of reality that used to tie them together is coming undone and pretty soon… all the dimensions are going to collapse in on each other and kill everyone."

"… what?" Glace asked. "The dimensions are… what are you even talking about?"

"This place you live in, this _universe_ you live in, it's not the only one there is. There's a whole bunch of them that are all connected. I don't know if they were all separate dimensions originally or if they were all one before it got split up for some reason, but the point is that there are multiple universes living right next to yours. Entire universes filled with their own little problems and rules and Pokémon that have lives just like you. You just can't see them because you don't have that power."

Glace didn't know how to respond. In truth, she had heard of the multiverse theory before. Supposedly, other dimensions did live alongside their own dimension, all of the dimensions completely unaware of the others. Glace had never believed in the theory though, so seeing Sonata spout about it made her start to question why she had allowed the Noivern into her house on a sheer whim. Why had she done that? She never did that with other Pokémon, including those that she actually knew.

"And you would know this, how?" Glace then asked, deciding to humor the idea. "You don't have any proof that's the reason the hole is there. It could be something else, like a spatial anomaly. Doesn't have to mean that the dimensions are collapsing on each other."

"But it does," Sonata insisted. "That tear is a sign that the whole multiverse is going to get destroyed. Because the truth is... I had a vision after I saw that hole in the sky. And in that vision, I saw how the tear got there. I saw what that it's going to spread and what's going to happen if it's not closed up."

"That vision doesn't mean anything. It could have been a reaction to your anxiety about the strange hole."

"I thought that, Glace. I really did. But then I saw something else in my vision. I saw what really broke my world."

"And what was that?"

"That I'm not actually a Noivern. I'm a piece of someone, someone that wanted to stop all of this from happening, but got split apart before they could stop the tear from forming. Someone who had their soul split apart and had their soul pieces scatter all over the multiverse, where each piece then took on the form of some Pokémon, totally unaware of what they really were.

"And you Glace, are also one of those pieces."

The moment Glace heard those words, that foreboding feeling came back. And though Glace told herself that this Noivern had probably suffered from a panic attack and that vision was nothing more than a hallucination, the feeling refused to go away.

"I saw all of the pieces and what they looked like, but yours was the only one I saw that also told me where you were right this second," Sonata continued. "It told me that you'd be in Granite Town, working at the dojo. So as soon as I saw that, I came here to find you. Took a little while to figure out how to hop dimensions, but I did it, and now I'm here with you. You were exactly where the vision said you'd be."

Sonata breathed deeply as she set her claws down on the table and softened her gaze.

"I know that this is all probably hard to believe, but it's true," she said. "You can feel it, can't you? Isn't that why you let me in and listen to me even though you really had no reason to trust me? Some part of you knows that we're connected.

"Plus, didn't you feel anything when you saw that tear in the sky? I know you had to have felt something. There was something off about you when you opened that door to let me in. You tried to hide it, but I saw-"

Glace had heard enough. She slammed her claw down on the table, prompting a small jump out of the Noivern. Glace pointed her other claw at the door, praying that Sonata didn't notice how much it was trembling.

"Get out of my house," she hissed. "I don't ever want to see you again."

"Glace… look, I get that this is a lot to take in," Sonata started to say, refusing to move an inch. "I had a hard time with it too. Took me a couple of days to accept everything. But it's the truth! And if we want to stop that tear from getting any bigger and getting into any of the other dimensions, we need to find the other pieces and become whoever we were before."

"No, you're just delusional. You saw that hole in the sky and it made your mind fall apart because you had no idea what to think of it. It filled your head with these insane ideas so you could try to understand what that thing is outside. We're fragments of someone that got split apart? What kind of story is that?"

"It makes sense if you think about it, Glace. Tell me… what do you remember about your parents? Go on, tell me what they were like."

Glace opened her mouth, but then stopped as a horrible realization came over her. She had no memory of her parents, whatsoever. She had memories of a childhood and being a Sneasel, but for the life of her, she could not remember the ones who had raised her since she had hatched from her egg. There were other Weavile in her memory, plenty of them, but not a single one claimed to be her mother or father.

"You can't remember, can you?" Sonata asked rhetorically. "Well, same thing with me. It's just something you don't think about for some reason. For whatever reason, you never feel like wondering where your parents are and where you came from. You wonder why that is?"

"It doesn't mean anything. My upbringing was different than most civilized Pokémon's. It was probably one of the customs to never let the hatchlings meet their parents."

Glace could taste her own lie. There had only been a couple hatchlings that were orphans, but they had been told by the others what had happened to their parents. Not Glace, though. No one had said anything about her parents. No one told her if she had been abandoned when she was still an egg or that her parents had perished in a hunting incident. No one had said anything to her.

"Get out or I swear I'll make you get out," Glace hissed.

"I'm not leaving," Sonata shot back, now returning Glace's stern gaze. "You know that I'm telling you the truth. We have to go find the others. We need to get them and stop the multiverse from collap-"

Glace swiped at the Noivern's left eye before she even knew what she was doing. A blood-curdling scream filled the air as her attack connected. Glace flinched and swiftly withdrew her claw before backing away from the Noivern. She could see Sonata hissing and squirming as she covered her eye with one of her wings.

"I didn't mean to do that…" Glace said uneasily. "I just wanted-"

"So you're not going to listen to me," Sonata rasped. "You're not going to believe me, no matter what I tell you."

Sonata removed her wing from her face, allowing Glace to see that the Noivern's left eye now had three long marks gouging deep into her flesh. Trickles of blood and tears ran down her cheeks. Glace knew that Sonata would probably never be able to use that eye again. She resisted the urge to glance down at her claw and see how much blood it was coated with.

The Noivern kept her burning gaze on the Weavile a moment longer, then released a long sigh.

"And chances are, neither will any of the others," she went on. "They're probably going to attack me sooner than believe me. I should have realized that. I was being way too optimistic, thinking that all of you were going to believe me without some kind of struggle."

The Noivern shook her head before giving Glace a sad smile.

"I was never good at fighting. Spies are good at sneaking around and being stealthy, but not so much at combat," Sonata then said. "But you're good at fighting, Glace. If the other fragments were to give you a hard time… you could stop them before they really hurt you. You wouldn't get your eye messed up like me."

"What are you talking about?" Glace asked. "Why are you talking like I'm going to help you? I already told you I don't believe a single word you just said."

"I heard you, don't worry," Sonata assured. "You said you don't think I'm telling the truth. I know that. But I know that you do believe it.

"And I think I know how to make you _admit_ you believe, too."

That was when Sonata sprang at Glace. Glace instinctively darted to the side, but much to her surprise, found she wasn't fast enough. Sonata suddenly gained a tremendous boost in speed, as though she had become a lightning bolt, and collided with Glace before the Weavile could take one step.

However, instead of Sonata knocking Glace down, something else happened. The Noivern's body turned into a mass of iridescent light, light so bright that it drowned everything in her vision with its brilliance.

All she could see was the light seeping into her body, becoming one with her.

A horrible pain suddenly shot through Glace's skull, as if a bolt of lightning had struck her head. She grabbed her head as she staggered backwards before tripping over her own feet. The pain only grew as the back of her head smacked against the ground, soon turning into a sensation of someone slowly driving a claw into the back of her skull.

All sound left her ears as darkness sprouted of the corners of her eyes and flooded the rest of her vision. She could no longer feel the ground beneath her as she slipped further and further away.

But just before she could completely fade away and become one with the black shrouding her vision, she saw something within that darkness.

It was a creature of ambiguous shape. No matter how much Glace stared at it, she could not discern its shape. Every time its shape seemed to take on an identifiable form, her vision would warp and the creature would be an unidentifiable mass once again. All she could tell was that bluish-white light surrounded its entire body like a radiating aura, making the creature a tiny beacon of light amongst the sea of darkness surrounding them.

A flash of light suddenly went off. Everything became an all-compassing white, taking the creature with it and throwing Glace into a world of absolute nothingness. She would have shielded her eyes if she had the ability to.

When the light faded and the darkness returned, Glace found that the creature now had a gaping, black hole in its midsection, about the size of an apple. The creature looked down at the hole and for a moment, did nothing.

And then it happened.

One moment, the creature was whole, gazing at the hole with a vacant expression.

And then the next moment, it abruptly shattered into several pieces, as though someone had thrown a mirror to the ground. The second the fragments formed, each one of them went under an instantaneous metamorphosis. One of the fragments sprouted wings from the sides of its body. Another had multiple tendrils crawl out of its shuddering form before sinking low to the ground. Another produced four legs and ears so sharp, it could pick up on even the subtlest of sounds. Multiple fragments produced four limbs, only to stand up and change their front legs into arms moments later. There was even one that didn't change at all, remaining a blob of no discernable shape.

However, amongst all of the fragments, there was one Glace noticed the most. One of the upstanding fragments that held a rather nasty set of claws, which she was quick to realize was a Sneasel.

That fragment was her.

Its face was shrouded in darkness, but Glace knew that the clawed fragment was her. The way it stood with its shoulders slightly hunched and the way it subtly held its claws up, ready to strike at a moment's notice, was far too similar to her own posture.

Before Glace could study the apparent doppelganger any longer, multiple tears suddenly ripped through the darkness above them. Within each of these tears, there lay a location. In one, a forest blossoming with life. In another, a stone castle towering over a prosperous city. Each one was unique to the others, holding places that Glace had never seen before.

Each of the fragments looked up at the rips as they suddenly started to grow closer and closer together. All of the locations within the tears fell to ruin, the forest now a rotting wasteland in the midst of a harsh blizzard and the castle now falling to pieces as its city burned.

All of the fragments gazed at a single tear, not a single one of them gazing at the same hole as another fragment, watching them with the same vacant stare that their whole form wore.

Then, all at once, they leapt into the tears. Each one of the fragments disappeared into a single tear so that not a single tear was unoccupied. They scrambled through the collapsing worlds, hurrying about in what appeared to be a frantic search.

There was a flash of light, and then, all chaos within the tears stopped. The destruction had ceased and life was slowly returning to normal. Pokémon carefully rebuilt their world, returning forests back to their former glory, nursing the injured back to health, putting out the ravaging fires, all of these things.

All of the tears then closed up and disappeared into the darkness.

The only thing that remained was the original creature Glace had seen earlier before it had split up, towering high above her and gazing upon her with its luminous eyes.

 _ **Find the others, Glace.**_

 _ **Become one.**_

Glace suddenly found herself back in her house, collapsed on the ground. She was sweating, shaking violently, and had tears in the corner of her eyes. The Weavile rubbed at her eyes with the back of her claw before she slowly stood back up. Her head no longer throbbed with that horrible pain, but she could still feel a dull ache in the back of her skull.

She breathed in slowly as she looked around her home. Sonata was nowhere to be found. Her blood was still in a small puddle on the floor, along with being stained to Glace's claws, but none leading to the door. There was no trail. It was as though Sonata had abruptly stopped existing.

 _I'm not really gone, Glace._

 _I'm still here._

The Weavile jumped at the sudden voice. She knew that voice. That was Sonata's voice. And yet, she was nowhere in sight…

"Sonata? Where did you go?" Glace asked, quickly composing herself.

 _In your head. I'm you now._

Glace saw something flash in her mind's eye. It was quick, but for just one second, she saw Sonata looking at her in the very darkness Glace had just escaped from.

It was only then did Glace realize how much Sonata's voice sounded more like the thoughts in her head rather than noises from the outside world.

"How did you-"

 _I merged myself with you. I let you assimilate me. You don't remember how I turned into that light? That was me, merging with you._

 _You finally going to admit you're a fragment now?_

Glace's knees started to feel weak. Standing was becoming very laborious and tiring all of the sudden.

Memories that weren't Glace's own leaked into her mind and meshed with hers. She saw the supposed guild leader that Sonata worked for, a Suicune of all Pokémon. She saw how everything Sonata did was to impress him and to be his most prized member. She wanted to be the best of the best, the greatest spy of all his other spies.

Glace saw how Sonata had gained her current status with the Suicune. She had gone on a mission to see if the enemy was hiding out in a secluded area someone had told them about. During that mission, Sonata figured out that those enemies knew about the guild and were planning on attacking it after returning to their home base and rallying up their allies.

Glace saw how she had made a mistake and the enemies spotted her. She saw how the Noivern accidentally destroyed the entire place in an attempt to escape, killing everyone inside. And then she saw her frantically flying back to the guild as demonic ghost-types stalked her through the night...

And then, she saw the tear in the sky open up in Sonata's dimension. She saw the Noivern's entire perception of reality fall apart, thrusting her into a full-blown existential crisis where she questioned if anything she had ever believed was true. Maybe there was no such thing as Arceus and that all of the universes were created by a great explosion in the void that was every universe there ever was and ever would be.

But within days, Sonata knew what really mattered. She had to abandon the only one that mattered to her, to tell him that she could no longer be his spy, and find her other selves in the other dimensions. She knew it would hurt. She knew how much the Suicune depended on her. She was the most reliable of all his members. She was the one who never failed him, no matter how dire the situation was.

But she knew she had to leave.

Even though being with her leader slowly drove away the malicious influence oppressing her homeland and terrorizing the denizens within, there was a much bigger threat now. Something that would wipe out the entire dimension if she didn't act.

So the night before she departed, she wrote a note to her leader. She struggled and her claws wouldn't stop shaking, making her writing borderline illegible, but she didn't know how else to tell the Suicune what she had to do. She didn't have the courage to tell him all of this to his face. She couldn't bear the sight of his pained, bemused face that begged her to explain why she had to leave so abruptly and never come back.

She knew it would prevent her from ever leaving behind her dimension.

 _Hey, stop looking at my memories! Those are private you know!_

The memories promptly ceased, leaving Glace with a view of her wall instead. However, Glace did not move. There was no longer any denying what Sonata had said. Everything that seemingly delusional Noivern had said was true.

Glace was a fragment. She was a piece of a whole, and now she had one of the other pieces inside of her mind.

"Why? Why would you do this?" Glace whispered. "Why did you merge with me?"

 _You saw the vision, you know why. We have to stop the dimensions from collapsing on each other. The only way to do that is to become one again._

"But… why did you merge with me? Why didn't you absorb _me_ into _you_? You can do that, can't you?"

 _Well hypothetically yeah. I'd have to do some things I wouldn't want to do… but I could. But I didn't because you ruined my eye. If I absorbed you into me, then I'd have to go after the others like this. And if it went down like how it went with you, then I'd probably end up getting killed. And then we wouldn't get anywhere._

 _But if_ _ **you**_ _were the one to go find the others, then I wouldn't have to worry about that. Like I said before, you're good with fighting and you're a Weavile, which makes it better. And maybe they'd feel less threatened by you since you're smaller than me._

"So you merged with me because you want me to do your job."

 _I wouldn't call it that, but you can if you want. I can still help you, though. I might not have a body anymore, but I can still tell you what you need to know. I know what the others look like and what dimension they're in. And I can help you get to those dimensions. I'll help you all you want._

 _Because you really do believe me now, don't you? You know that we have to find the others and become one._

Glace sighed. She tightened her claws into fists as she forced them to stop trembling and looked outside. She could still see the tear in the sky along with all the unsuspecting Pokémon still outside, completely oblivious to how much of a grim omen it was.

Glace, Sonata, and their other selves were the only ones who could stop the destruction that was soon to befall the entire multiverse.

 _Alright Sonata. Tell me where our first fragment is._


	2. I'm Not Going Anywhere

The first rays of the morning sun peered over the horizon and flooded into Lilac City. It was the dawn of a new day. A new day meant a fresh start to forget anything that had happened the day before and to start anew. It was a brand new day of untapped potential and adventure for everyone slumbering within the city.

Almost everyone, that was.

A Tranquill awoke the moment the light settled over his eyes. No one was there with him. Only he lived in his room, or a hutch as he always preferred to call it. It certainly reminded him of the coops that the farmers of the city kept their uncivilized Pidgey with how there was not a single window in the room. Steel wire replaced where any glass panes should be. The wire also replaced half the walls, specifically the walls that faced east so that the sunlight would hit him without fail every morning. To his right, there lay a large, wooden box for him to wander into at any time that had no steel to replace the walls. It made a decent shelter during the stormy nights when the wind howled louder than the Mightyena packs in the midst of a hunt and when the rain left you shuddering whenever it pelted you.

Yes, this place was most certainly a hutch.

But he didn't fret. He took comfort in the fact that unlike those Pidgey, he could actually leave the coop on his own. There was not a single lock to be found on it.

The Tranquill stretched out his wings before he stood up from his nest-like bed. He picked off the straws of hay that stuck to his plumage, meticulously pulling out every last fiber, until he was completely spotless. Once he had done that, the Tranquill stepped out of his nest and walked to the little door built into the wire mesh near his bed. He pushed it all the way open with his head and then stepped into the doorway.

He looked out to see that he stood high over a great forest of evergreens that covered the land for miles and miles. In the distance, he could see a river weaving its way through the thick foliage, as well as a few mountains' hazy outlines looming in the distance. He even saw other flying-types soaring through the air, some of which he felt were also Tranquill. The body shape and the feathers' sheen in the morning light certainly reminded him of his own.

It didn't really matter, however. They wouldn't be much of a bother. The Tranquill spread his wings and then leapt forward. He swiftly flapped his wings just as he began to plummet, and caught the wind under his feathers. He barely dropped a few inches before he swooped back up and returned to his parallel position with his hutch. He looked back at it and admired how it still managed to stay latched onto that towering tree's trunk even after so many years. He really thought that the nails keeping the hutch attached to the tree would have rusted by now and sent the hutch tumbling down into the forest below. Perhaps the nails were useless now and only the branch resting beneath the hutch kept it in its place. The Tranquill didn't know.

But just like with those flying-types he had seen earlier, it really didn't matter if he knew. It didn't make much of a difference.

The Tranquil kept his gaze on his home for just a moment longer, and then flew away.

* * *

Many minutes later, the Tranquill found himself in the midst of Lilac City. Since the sun had just barely risen, not many Pokémon were roaming about its cobblestone streets. There were a few dozen from what he could tell, but they were mostly merchants leaving their homes and setting up shop for the day. But other than that, the town was quiet and in a state of lull.

The only real activity of Lilac City was from the tower mills. There were five mills in the entire city, each one standing atop one of the small, isolated hills throughout the vicinity. Four of them rested on hills that landmarked the corners of the town. The fifth one, the largest of them all with twice the mass of the others, stood in the very center of the town. Each and every one of the mill's set of sails spun as a soft breeze pushed through the city. They moved so slowly that the Tranquill knew that he could probably sit on one of the sails for a full minute before he would be forced to fly away lest he plummet to the ground.

Of course, it wasn't the season for strong gales to blow through the city right now. That would be in another couple of months, and then the city would surely have more than enough energy to make all the paper they wanted with all the wood pulp they surely had gathered in storage. The Tranquill was sure that the mills had other uses, but he had never cared to wonder what they were. To him, the mills were more tourist attractions or landmarks for the city than to actually gather power from the wind.

He turned his attention away from the mills and continued on with his flight until he found himself at his destination; a brick building with a single tower protruding out of the roof. A red flag raveled limply in the breeze from the tower. He saw the words "Lilac City Guard Guild" printed on the one side of the fabric that would occasionally unfurl completely in moments of a strong, momentary gust.

The Tranquill settled himself on the ground by the entryway before tucking his wings into his body the moment both of his feet firmly planted on the ground. Then, after taking a moment to catch his breath, he made his way into the building.

When the Tranquill entered the building, he found that just like the city, it was mostly vacant. No voices bounded off the walls of the building, nor did any footsteps. However, the Tranquill knew that the building wasn't totally vacant. Someone was always here at the crack of dawn, specifically waiting for Pokémon like him.

And after a moment of wandering through the winding hallways and passing by several rooms, the Tranquill found that very Pokémon. There, behind a large counter of a spacious room filled with shelves of papers and books, stood a Haxorus. He didn't seem to notice that the Tranquill had just walked in. He instead continued to glance through a number of pages resting before him with a bored, vacant expression.

The Tranquill made his way over the front of the counter, but stayed back far enough so that the Haxorus could actually see him the moment he stopped reading those papers. The counter towered over a good many of guild members that were taller than even the Tranquill, much to everyone's chagrin, but no one had ever bothered to get a shorter counter. It supposedly was too much trouble.

"Sir, I'm here to report for my shift today," the Tranquill stated.

The Haxorus lifted his head and quickly caught the Tranquill's eye. The moment the two locked eyes, the Haxorus cracked a smile.

"Ah, right on time as always," the Haxorus noted. "Thanks for checking in."

"It's not an issue, sir. Is there anything I should know about before I head to the tower?"

"Oh Patience, you know the answer to that already. Do you really need to ask that?"

Patience had to resist sighing. Yes, he did know the answer to his question. It had been the same answer for a very long time now. He didn't know why he had even asked.

"Alright. Thank you. I'll see you in the evening," Patience then said.

"See you. Don't fall asleep up there," the Haxorus replied.

The Haxorus went back to leafing through his papers. Patience turned away soon after and walked toward the door at the other side of the room. Once he reached it, he exited out of the guild and found himself back outside once again. The sun shined much brighter now, making Patience's entire vision fill with an irritating glare. He quickly squinted his eyes and forced himself to stare at the ground.

When the light no longer suffocated his vision and there were no fuzzy lights to be seen dancing before him, he pushed off against the ground with his legs. He flapped his wings down as he shot into the sky, pushing him higher into the sky. Then, he flapped his wings up, spreading apart his feathers so that the wind couldn't push him back down to the ground.

Flap up in a forward motion, and then flap down with feathers split apart. Repeat over and over again while using your tail to help with sharp turns.

Such simple directions done so swiftly. It was all subconscious really, something so simple to do that you didn't even need to think about it once you practiced enough.

So many Pokémon envied the flying-types wings and their ability to soar with the wind. They looked at the flying-types' wings and they wished that they too could be as free as the flying-types. After all, what could possibly make you feel more free than the thought that you could go anywhere you wanted to be? No one could hold you down, no matter how hard they tried. Once you were in the sky and had the wind beneath your wings, you were invincible and the pilot of your own destiny.

But Patience knew the truth, and the truth was, no one could ever be absolutely free. Deep down, everyone was shackled to something, whether it be an obligation or a perpetual routine forged after many years of monotonous activities. The flying-types were no exception with their wings only being a means of slightly faster transportation than running on multiple legs. They were not the embodiment of freedom.

Especially not Patience.

* * *

It wasn't long before Patience found himself near the forest he had left behind earlier that morning. Except this time, he was by the side of the forest that faced directly toward the city's entrance. A large trail weaved its way through that side of the forest, stretching from far past the horizon to the very gate that lead to the city.

And there, standing at the border between the Lilac City and the forest, stood the watchtower Patience sought. It was a metal structure that stood high over the forest and city, looming over them almost as high as the mills of the city. The very top of it was nothing more than a box, and to access it, one had to climb up a ladder that lead up to it in a corkscrew pattern.

Of course, Patience didn't have to use that ladder. With a few flaps and a change in angling, he propelled himself up to the very top of the watchtower. When he found himself right above the edge of the box, he pulled his wings toward his back and gripped the thin metal with his talons. He lurched forward for just a moment, but didn't fall from his perch. He only waited for the momentum finish its toll on him, and then turned around and faced the forest that sprawled past Lilac City for miles and miles.

It was time to begin his shift.

For the next twelve hours, he needed to watch that forest. He needed to see what Pokémon were coming through it and had intentions of entering Lilac City.

It wasn't a job for everyone. Not everyone could identify every known Pokémon species within seconds. With the species count surpassing nine hundred, it was easy to mix up a few Pokémon. Mistaking Pidgey for Pidove was quite a common mistake for instance, along with thinking that Emolga were Pikachu. Patience had heard of the other sentry Pokémon before him making a number of clumsy mistakes with their duty. One of them, an Electabuzz, identified so many Pokémon incorrectly on one bad day that the guild forced him to spend an entire night correcting all the inaccurate paperwork they had filed regarding who had visited the city.

Everyone expected that Patience would be the same when he first joined the guard guild those many years ago. After all, he was only a fledgling of ten years who had just left his home behind. How could a Tranquill who had no life experience prior do any better than far older Pokémon?

Patience noticed a flash of movement amongst the green in the forest. He straightened himself up as he peered down and waited for the Pokémon to show itself. Within the moments, the Pokémon emerged from the thick forest. It appeared to be a bipedal, brown Pokémon with a green hood over its head. Patience couldn't see its face from beneath its hood, but he didn't have to see its face to know what the Pokémon was. It was an easy one; a Decidueye. Only Decidueye had that green hood and that feather sticking out of the top of it, not to mention they were the only Pokémon with unnaturally long, white legs to hurry through the night with.

"Decidueye," Patience called. "Where are you from and what is your purpose for coming to Lilac City?"

The Decidueye stopped in its tracks. It peered up at Patience with a misty look in its eyes and for a moment said nothing.

"Oh. Oh right, this city has a sentry monitoring who goes in," the Decidueye realized. "Friend of mine told me that, but I didn't remember until just now."

"Where are you from and what is your purpose for coming to Lilac City?" Patience said again in a bland tone.

"I'm passing through so I can reach Jasmine Town. I'll probably be here for the night since I've been travelling for quite a while. And I came from Daffodil Town."

"Very well. You can go."

The Decidueye gave Patience a nod, and then made his way toward the city's entrance. Patience leapt off his perch and settled himself inside the tower's box. He then grabbed a blank piece of parchment from a pile resting near his feet, along with a pad of ink. After he dragged the both of them over to his side, he opened up the pad and then pressed the tip of his beak into the pad. He ignored the strong scent running into his nostrils as he scribbled a simple message onto the paper. Within seconds, the words "Decidueye from Daffodil Town- Passing through" were inscribed at the very top of paper.

The Tranquill lifted his beak from the paper and then flew back to his perch before he resumed his watch over the forest.

How large was the forest? Patience had never known for certain. Despite all his years of watching over this spacious, empty forest, he had never asked anyone how many trees it was. Perhaps it was a two hundred tree forest? No, that was most certainly too small. It had to be at least a five hundred tree forest with how much space lay between the watchtower and the mountains. Maybe it had been a three hundred tree forest when he first started his job, but it had grown over the years.

How many years had he been watching this forest again? He had become a sentry at age ten, he knew that. Ten was the age Pokémon were deemed capable of providing meaningful service to society. The very day he turned ten he became a sentry.

But how long had he been a sentry? Could it have been ten years? He wouldn't have been surprised if it had been that long. He certainly felt he had been watching the forest for the same amount of years he had been a hatchling. Or maybe it had been even longer. Maybe he had been a sentry for twenty years.

Patience didn't know.

There was another movement in the sea of green. Patience eyed the opening of the forest and saw a Pokémon once again. This one had black and blue fur with streaks of yellow and walked upon four legs. Obviously this was an electric-type. Only electric-types held that color scheme for the most part. Now what electric-types walked on all fours with those colors?

"Luxray," Patience called out. "Where are you from and what is your purpose for entering Lilac City?"

The aforementioned Pokémon stopped and looked up at the Tranquill. His stern expression didn't break.

"I have a friend who lives here that I came to visit," the Luxray answered. "Her name is Ivy and she's a baker here. I came from Sage Village."

"Very well. You can go."

The Luxray brought his gaze back to the city entrance and carried on his way. Patience swooped back down into the box and once again dipped his beak into the ink pad. Then, he wrote "Luxray from Sage Village- Visiting" on the paper right below the line stating the Decidueye's information. He barely even remembered writing the words by the time he landed back on his perch and resumed his watch over the forest.

Patience could still see the river that resided near his home. It had shrunk down quite considerably in size from his current distance and had become barely anything more than a miniscule creek, but he could still see the glistening of the water's surface. He wondered what sorts of Pokémon lived in that water. Perhaps a small family of Squirtle or Poliwag? Maybe there were even some Magikarp in that river. Perhaps Patience could swoop down to that river after his shift and catch a Magikarp. He always did find their flavor quite rich and salty.

Why did the Magikarp taste so good anyway? They were the most common water-types to be found. Every single flying-type that was also an active hunter loved to eat them. Surely, if they were so plentiful, they shouldn't taste as wonderful as they actually were. Everyone would have caught them if that was the case and fished them out of extinction. And yet, they remained so numerous in so many of the rivers and seas of the world. Could it be because they all had the potential to become those ferocious Gyarados that could ravage entire villages? Was that capability to become those fearsome beasts deep within their bodies what made their meat so tasteful?

Patience saw the blur of movement near the opening of the forest again. This time there were two upstanding Pokémon emerging from the forest. One appeared to be a black-furred Pokémon with a large, red mane tied together with what seemed to be a black rag. The other was a brown, scaly Pokémon with a skull helmet covering a majority of its head, preventing Patience from being able to read its facial expression.

The brown one most definitely was a Marowak. Only Marowak wore skulls on their heads. The other one was a Zoroark, as it held the bushy mane Zoroark were known for, as well as having red claws on its paws and feet.

And yet, even though Patience knew what species these two were, he could not fight off a nagging feeling that something about them was not right. Nothing about their appearance was unnatural, and no malicious intent seemed to glimmer in their eyes, but his innards continued to crawl.

"Marowak and Zoroark," Patience called out, forcing himself to ignore the feeling. "Where are you from and what is your purpose for entering Lilac City?"

The two of them stopped and looked up at him. For a moment, they said nothing and only stared up at him with puzzled frowns. At least, the Zoroark did. Patience still couldn't see the Marowak's expression behind his helmet.

"Huh?" the Zoroark asked.

"Where are you from and what is your purpose for entering Lilac City?" Patience stated again.

"Why do you want to know?" the Zoroark asked in return.

"Because I am the sentry of Lilac City and I'm required to ask every visitor that wants to enter why they want to do so," Patience stated in a dull tone. "It is so we can keep track of how many Pokémon are in the city and who they might be. It is a safety precaution."

"So you guys like, monitor everyone coming in, in case someone does something bad and you kind of have an idea of who they were and who they came from so you can track them down later."

"Essentially."

"Huh, that's actually kind of cool. Nobody ever did that where I was from as far as I can remember. They ever do that where you were from, Dimitri?"

"No, there wasn't any need," the Marowak answered with a shake of his head. "We had more efficient ways of keeping track of who was where."

"You mean with those weird things you guys wore on your wrists?"

"Yes, we used those. They connected to everything in the city and if you ever-"

"Where are you two from and what is your purpose for entering Lilac City?" Patience cut in, barely able to suppress a sigh.

"Oh. Oh right," the Zoroark said as she turned back to the Tranquill with a nervous laugh. "Sorry about that. We wanted to come here because we wanted to try living here. It seems like a nice place. Nice and quiet and everything."

"And where you're from?" Patience asked.

"Uh… We're from Amethyst City."

Patience slowly shook his head. These two Pokémon really were something. He wondered how much time he had wasted on these two just to get to this point.

"There's no such city as Amethyst City. Turn around and go back to wherever you came from," Patience ordered.

"What? How do you know that Amethyst City isn't a real place?" the Zoroark babbled. "You can't possibly know all of the cities in the entire region!"

"No, but I can know the names of all of the neighboring cities," Patience droned on. "Besides, there is not a single city in this entire region that is named after a rock."

"So then what do you guys all name your cities after then? Is it flowers? What, do you just name your cities after whatever flowers you have in the area? You could be a little more creative."

"Please turn around and go back to wherever you came from. I'm not letting you into the city and if you resist any further, I'll call someone to come take you away."

"You can't just turn us away just because you don't know what city we were in last! We're new around here and we really don't know anything about-"

"We should go," the Marowak then said, silencing the Zoroark's outbursts. "Come on, it's not worth it if we have to keep arguing with him and whoever is going to try and make us leave. Let's try finding somewhere else to go. There are plenty of other places we can stay in, I'm sure."

Patience could see how much the Zoroark struggled to say something to the Marowak, but was unable to find the words to offer a rebuttal. So after a few seconds of staring at him, she finally sighed and turned her back to Patience.

"Fine, let's try somewhere else," she said glumly. "I really thought this would be a nice place, though. Everything seems so peaceful… it would have been a nice change for me after everything."

"I know. I know…" the Marowak said with a deep sigh. "We'll find somewhere, though. I promise."

The two then disappeared back into the forest and out of Patience's view. The Tranquill exhaled loudly as he ruffled his feathers. It had been a while since he had dealt with Pokémon like those two. Why did the Zoroark say she was from a city named after a gem? Weren't Zoroark supposed to be sly and crafty, not to mention usually disguised as other Pokémon? Surely she could have come up with a legitimate city name to pretend she was from, as well as pretend to be something inconspicuous like a Mareep.

Maybe she was crazy. That had to be it. That was the only way to explain why she had been acting that way. Of course, that didn't explain the Marowak. Was he supposed to be her friend? Or was he her mate? He certainly seemed to care about her, but that was all Patience could infer from their interactions. Their relationship was ambiguous at best, and it still didn't explain why he put up with the Zoroark's odd behavior. Of course, if they were mates, perhaps that did explain some things. Maybe.

Patience couldn't remember the last time he had pondered this much over Pokémon he had seen on sentry duty. How long had it been since he last turned someone away? Was it ten years? And who was it, exactly? Why did he turn them away?

He saw another flash of color near the forest edge. He immediately stopped thinking about those strange Pokémon.

The new Pokémon barely emerged from the forest and Patience already knew what it was.

"Umbreon," he called out. "Where are you from and what is your purpose for entering Lilac City?"

The Umbreon didn't stop. He only kept walking as he glanced up at Patience.

"I'm from Daffodil Town," the Umbreon replied. "I'm here to buy some supplies before heading back."

"Very well, you can go."

Just as with all of the other Pokémon permitted to enter the city, the Umbreon continued on his way. And just as always, Patience wrote down his name, city of origin, and reason for coming. Just as always, he barely processed the movement.

And then just as always, once he finished, he stood back on the edge of the box and looked back at the forest. Then he waited for more Pokémon.

Just as always.

* * *

After allowing fifty Pokémon into Lilac City, the sun finally began its descent and dyed the sky with warm, pleasant shades of purple and orange.

The moment Patience saw it, he grabbed the paper he had been writing on all day and held it tight in his beak. Once he clamped down hard on it, he then swooped off the watchtower and made his way back to the guild. As he flew past the many buildings and streets of the city, he noticed that not many Pokémon were out and about in the fading light of the sunset. Just as with the early morning of that day, everyone seemed to be inside their homes. However, instead of still sleeping, they were now resting after a long day's work. At least, that was how it was before Patience was on sentry duty all those years ago. He couldn't imagine that the daily routine of the city had changed all that much in those years.

Patience didn't really have a reason to talk to them anyway. It was getting late and though he hadn't done much movement besides flutter back and forth in his watchtower, his body still felt heavy and flapping his wings was slowly becoming more and more draining. He needed to get back to his hutch and recharge as soon as possible.

Patience hastened his flight and within minutes, found himself back at the guild's entrance. He quickly settled himself onto the ground, and then made his way inside. When he entered the building, he found that unlike in the streets, the guild did have some Pokémon gathered in its vicinity. Specifically, it had seven Pokémon at the counter where the Haxorus usually was; a Scyther, Raichu, Ampharos, Lucario, Pyroar, Heracross, and a Butterfree. They were all gathered around the counter, talking amongst themselves about something that Patience couldn't quite discern from his distance. All he knew was that he recognized all of the Pokémon at that counter.

They were all guild members. A few of them worked together in teams, such as the Lucario, Butterfree, and Pyroar with wandering around the city and keeping an eye out for any sort of trouble. Some of the others though, such as the Ampharos, worked solo and mostly stayed out at night to help any Pokémon that might be lost in the night's thick darkness and help them find their way back home. But at the end of the day, they were all a part of the guild and had been so for many years, just like Patience.

Patience had only stared at them for a couple moments when they all seemed to notice him in the corner of their eyes. Each of them turned toward the Tranquill and shot him beaming gazes.

"Oh hey, it's Patience!" the Lucario said. "We were just wondering if you had finished up your shift yet or not."

"You were?" Patience asked as he placed the paper in his beak down by his feet. "I wonder why that was."

"Because the seven of us were going to go down to The Miltank Café for a little while," the Lucario explained. "Today they've got a special on those delicious Lum shakes they always sell. We were going to invite you over."

"Hmmm, tempting," Patience said with a slow nod. "I do enjoy those Lum shakes. They're always quite pricy and I never have enough money to purchase them. But I am quite tired after standing on that watchtower for the entire day… not to mention I have to be awake by dawn tomorrow."

"We won't be gone too long," the Butterfree then assured. "We were all just going to order some shakes and then talk for a little while. We have jobs to do in the morning too, you know."

"I know, Bree," Patience replied. "Hmm. Well I suppose I can stay for a little while. It has been quite a while since I've spent time with any of you."

"Alright! Then let's get going!" Bree cheered with a flutter of his wings. "We'll meet you there since we know you need to give the chief your report and everything. So see you there!"

The rest of the Pokémon gave a cheer and a remark of their own, and then made their way toward the exit. Patience watched them all pass by for a moment, and then picked up his paper and went up to the counter. And even though the Haxorus was nowhere to be found, he knew that he didn't need to wait for him to return. Nothing of note had happened during his shift. Other that strange Marowak and Zoroark Patience had to reject, all of the Pokémon that had come by peacefully came into the city with no problems whatsoever.

With this thought in mind, the Tranquill neatly placed his piece of parchment on the counter and put an inkpad on the top of its corner. Then he turned around and hurried after the others.

* * *

By the time that Patience caught up with the other guild members, they were already inside The Miltank Café. It should have been surprising to him, but given that the café was right across the street from the guild, there was no reason to be surprised at all. Besides, they were all fast walkers, or fliers in Bree's case. They had to be with their specific line of work. The thought of slurping up delicious Lum shakes probably helped.

The café was a cozy little place, a perfect place to visit after a long day of sentry duty. The moment Patience entered inside, he saw the soft glow of the illumination orbs spread throughout the café. Some clung to the ceiling while others sat in little orb holders latched onto the walls. But despite the large amount of them, they did not fill the café with blinding light. They only cast a soft hue upon the interior, bringing about a calming vibe that Patience only really felt when he stood next to rivers on quiet mornings in his youth. It made it difficult to tell what color the café really was with the dim amount of light, but Patience found he didn't mind.

He could smell the rich scents of various aromas in the air. The Miltank Café was special in that it was one of the few places in the city that remained open after the sun set. With most of the businesses, they closed their doors the moment the first stars of the night appeared in the sky so that they could have the rest of the night to themselves. And after providing service for an entire day, Patience could understand why. If he was in their position, he would want to close up the shop and rest for the remainder of the night as well. Dealing with so many Pokémon, all demanding different goods or services and being especially picky about how they wanted things their way, surely had to be exhausting.

About a dozen wooden tables were set up inside the café with little cushions to sink into near each of the tables. Quite a number of Pokémon sat at those tables, sometimes alone and sipping their drinks in peace, or with others and chatting the night away. And for those that didn't want to sit at the tables, there were many cushions lined up behind the counter so that you were right next to the employees and could watch them make your drink.

That was exactly where the guild members sat. They had each seated themselves in one of those cushions, all the while waiting for either the barista or Patience himself to join them.

Patience wasted no time and strolled over to an empty seat between the Lucario and Pyroar. He would have flown over to them, considering it was a much faster alternative than walking on his skinny legs, but no one would be fond of that. Flying-types could fly all they wanted when outside, but once they were inside, they had to behave just like the land Pokémon. They couldn't flaunt their wings in such crammed places and make such a ruckus for everyone.

When Patience settled himself between the two Pokémon, it didn't take long for the guild members to notice him.

"There you are," the Lucario said with a smile. "Everything go okay?"

"The chief wasn't there, so I left the paper for him on the counter," Patience stated. "But he won't mind. I've done that before multiple times and he never minded."

"Well it's because you're such a great sentry," the Lucario laughed. "Nobody has been able to identify all those Pokémon as well as you. He knows you don't make any mistakes."

"And because we never have any suspicious Pokémon ever trying to enter the city," Patience stated blandly.

"Well yes, there's that too. Really says something about the city and the Pokémon that want to come in, doesn't it?"

That it was peaceful. That it was a wonderful place to live and that there was no real reason to be afraid of anything. There wasn't even any reason to stay inside at night. Anyone could walk out at night and not have to worry about shady Pokémon hanging out in the dark corners of alleys or feral Pokémon roaming about the streets at night. Everyone could live content and happy lives in Lilac City, never having to worry about anything.

They truly lived in a wonderful place as beautiful as the very lilac flowers the city was named after.

"I wonder how you never get bored of being up there on that watchtower," the Lucario then said. "Because you know, I used to be on that tower once when I first came here."

"You were the sentry they had before I took your place," Patience said with a nod.

"Oh, you remember that! Well yeah, I was. I'd been up there for I think two years at the time? I keep forgetting how long it was. That shift ruined my perception of time. Entire weeks seemed to go by and I wouldn't even realize it… but anyway. I remember really hating to be up there. Just watching that forest every day… that same forest… it wore on me. I'd just stand there all day and couldn't even take a nap. I'd have to keep my eyes on that forest all the time in case someone went by. I don't know how many times I'd miss someone and the chief would grill me when I turned in my report for the day."

It was then that a Miltank came over to Patience and the Lucario and gave the both of them a warm smile.

"Hello there, what can I get you two?" she asked.

"Lum shakes for both of us," the Lucario said with a grin. "The special is still good right now, isn't it?"

"Sure is, all the way until closing," the Miltank replied. "I'll get that for the both of you in just a few moments."

"Alright, thank you."

The Miltank kept her smile on them for a moment longer, and then turned away and went to retrieve the orders of the rest of the guild members. The Lucario set one of his elbows on the counter and held his head with his paw before turning to face Patience completely.

"But you're a natural at being a sentry," the Lucario went on. "It was like you were hatched to be one. You always knew when someone was coming and you never once made a mistake with identifying anyone. Hah, we're so lucky to have you, Patience. I really don't know what we'd do without you. We'd probably never be able to find a sentry as good as you, or someone who's even willing to stay as long as you."

An uncomfortable feeling passed over Patience that made his heart sink into his chest. He had to resist opening his wings and flying out of the café.

"What did you do that made you so good at being a sentry, anyway?" the Lucario then asked. "Was there anything you did as a Pidove that made you like this?"

"… I used to fly around during the day and explore the areas around here," Patience answered. "Whenever I did that, I would see many species of Pokémon. I would remember what they would look like, and then when I went home at the end of the day, I would ask my caretakers what they were. Usually they knew, but sometimes I would need to look it up in books because it was something exotic like a Banette. But it came naturally to me. I saw those Pokémon and once I knew their names, they stuck with me, like they were only other names for myself."

"Oh, so you were a little explorer huh?"

"Yes. I liked to see new things. I liked to see how different the sunset was in each place. I liked how the trees were different in some forests. It was exciting really, seeing all of those new sights and new Pokémon. "

"I see. It sounds like you really loved to explore."

"I did, yes."

"But now you're a sentry and you sit on top of a watchtower all day."

"Yes. My caretakers suggested that I did that when I became a Tranquill that so that I could do something useful for the city."

"Huh. Sounds like you really changed then. But I guess that happens to everyone. We all change our priorities and interests in life when we get older, especially when we try to find out place in life. There's just some things we have to leave behind in our hatchling days. It's the only way we can ever really grow. We can't really become better Pokémon if we want to keep doing the same thing forever."

"… Yes, Rale."

"It kind of reminds me of something I went through when I was younger. Back when I was still a little Riolu, I really used to love collecting all of these skulls of dead Pokémon I found out in the forest. I don't even remember why now; I found them fascinating for some reason. Something about the way it felt and how the eye sockets looked, I think. So I would go out hunting for them every single day and keep them in my room in these little piles. Well as you can imagine, when I came to the Guard Guild, I couldn't exactly do that anymore. Because it really doesn't look good for you to abandon your shift to find these skulls or-"

Patience's caretakers had both been good Pokémon. They were both Talonflame who claimed to have found him wandering about a forest as a hatchling so young that he could only make chirping noises to communicate. For ten years, they raised him on their own, as if he truly were their son. They nurtured him and taught him everything they could to make him the best Tranquill he could possibly be. That was why they told him to join the guild. They had wanted him to grow more so he could later potentially pursue a dream of becoming an adventurer in the future. After all, he could only learn so much from flying through the skies each and every day. He had to learn to interact with Pokémon and develop useful skills if he wanted to be a successful individual.

And he had just done that. He was a very successful individual now. He was an esteemed sentry that everyone admired. He had a home of his own and had become completely self-sufficient. He truly was the best Tranquill he could possibly be.

And yet… he didn't know what to think of the Tranquill he had become. He knew he made many Pokémon in his life very happy but… was he happy? Did he enjoy being a sentry that watched the same, unchanging forest every single day? Did the fact that he could no longer remember how old he was indicate that he was finally content and happy to settle into a routine, or that he no longer cared to find meaning in his days?

Or what about the fact that he couldn't even taste the drink that had just arrived in front of him? What was he supposed to think of that? He knew Lum shakes were delicious with how they were an explosion of just about every flavor imaginable. And he knew that the recipe hadn't been watered down over time, as Rale's ears perked up the second he slurped up his own shake. So why did it taste like water? Why did sipping up the shake feel very similar to forcing down a bitter medication?

"Hey, what's that outside?"

Patience lifted his beak from the inside of the class. He looked over to see all of the Pokémon in the cafe abandon their seats and congregate to the windows. Patience glanced over at Rale to find that he still sat nearby, though now eying the windows as well.

"What's going on?" Patience asked.

"I don't know, but there's only one real way to find out, isn't there?" he asked in return.

The Lucario and Tranquill got up from their seats and made their way over to the growing crowd. They forced their way through the crammed place, squeezing themselves into any space they could, until they made it to the very front of the crowd right by the windows. Patience didn't even need to follow everyone's gazes to see what all the fuss was about.

A hole had appeared in the sky. A great rip tore through the black sky, and within that tear, lay a vast amount of interchanging colors. And though it seemed small from where Patience stood, he knew that an entire city could fit inside it. Perhaps even two.

Patience kept his eyes glued to that tear, watching it carefully as everyone around him muttered amongst themselves, wondering what it could possibly be.

"Well, that's certainly something you don't see every day," Rale noted.

Patience didn't respond. He could barely hear Rale anyway. His words sounded muffled, as if he were talking underwater. The same could be said about all of the other Pokémon surrounding him. Everyone seemed to be growing further and further away from him the longer he stared at that hole.

What was that thing in the sky? What were all of those colors within it, swirling and streaming past one another like rivers? And why did he feel the need to ruffle his feathers the more he stared at it?

"… and I'm pretty sure you're going to have to keep any eye on it."

Patience blinked, and all of the voices came rushing back to him with full clarity. He almost flinched from how sudden it was. He puffed himself up and fluttered his wings for a moment, and then looked back at Rale.

"What did you say?" Patience asked.

"I said, it looks like everyone at the guild has got something to keep an eye on, since I'm pretty sure whatever that is can't be a good sign," Rale explained. "And I'm pretty sure the chief is going to make you the one who is going to be keeping an eye on it the most."

It took Patience a moment to process what Rale just said. However, even after he did, he still couldn't wrap his mind around it.

"Why do you think that?" he asked.

"Because you're at the watchtower all the time and have the best view of it," Rale explained. You'll always have it in your sight when you're up that high. And you're good at noticing anyway. So you'd be the first one to pick up on if it begins to change and if we need to tell everyone we need to evacuate the city or something like that."

So that was it. Now not only would he be watching the forest for visitors, he would be watching the sky to note any changes with that tear. He could see the chief giving him that order. It was most certainly a strong possibility.

The thought of that should have made Patience's heartbeat quicken or entice him to chirp merrily. Something new, after all these years. Something different to look at other than the canopy of that forest. Potential danger up in the sky, staring right back at him.

But this thought didn't do anything. He felt nothing at the thought of watching that hole in the sky. Because even if he was watching that hole in the sky, waiting for it to possibly spell out disaster for the Pokémon in the land below, it didn't change the fact that he was still stuck on that tower observing it.

In reality, his job would become no different. He would still on that watchtower every day of his life, watching something. But now instead of just the forest down below, it would be the sky above as well.

Patience turned away from the window and forced his way through a space between a Pikachu and Ivysaur too dumbfounded by the anomaly in the sky to even notice the Tranquill.

"Hey, where are you going?" Rale asked.

"I'm feeling tired, so I'm going to go home and sleep," Patience answered. "Can you pay for my shake and I'll pay you back tomorrow? I don't have any money on me at the moment."

"Oh, sure, I can do that. Have a good night, Patience."

Patience forced his way through the rest of the crowd. When he managed to make it through the mass of squirming bodies, he headed out the door. The moment he felt the cool, night air hit his face, he opened up his wings and shot into the sky. He soared over the city, quickly leaving it behind as he entered the great forest bordering it.

It was not long before he found himself at the foot of his hutch. Without wasting a moment, he opened up the door before closing it shut and settled himself in his bed.

He hadn't been lying. He did feel tired. His eyes felt droopy and he lacked the strength to flap his wings anymore.

So after he adjusted his posture and moved around some of the bedding so that it did not dig into his skin, Patience closed his eyes and immediately fell asleep.

Tomorrow would be the same as today, he knew that. It had been like that since he first joined the guild and became its sentry. He would wake up, receive his assignment, and then watch the forest all day. And then he would go back to the chief and report that nothing of note had truly happened. All was peaceful, just as they wanted it to be. Then he would return home and sleep, so long as no one invited him to spend part of the night with them.

And then the cycle would start anew once again.

Again and again.

Never to end.

And a new tear in the sky was not going to change that.


	3. I Don't Understand You

It was well into the night in Lilac City. Every single illuminous orb had been snuffed out and just about everyone had gone off to sleep. There were a few Pokémon still out and about, namely a select number of Pokémon from the guard guild that needed to be on the lookout for suspicious Pokémon, but otherwise all remained within their homes and waited for morning. Even the wild Pokémon residing in the forest just outside the city slumbered.

All was quiet and peaceful.

It was then that two disembodied lights shining with an iridescent brilliance suddenly manifested out of thin air right next to The Miltank Café. They twisted about in the darkness, though they remained rooted to their spot. They remained still as they searched about, all the while grasping at seemingly nothing in particular. A low growling sound rumbled through the air as the lights continued fumbling around.

 _I can't find it._

 _You will! Keep looking around. You'll know it when you touch it._

 _What am I even feeling for? I only feel air._

 _Reality's fabric, remember? You stuck your claws in a tear in that fabric, and if you can find the edges around the tear, then you can widen the tear and step into the other dimension._

 _That doesn't make any sense._

 _It's the only way I know how to explain it! You really think I understand it all that great either? Where I come from, sure we have these weird ghost-types that can do some strange, supernatural things to you the second they touch you, but anybody could write that off as them being able to get in your head and mess up your mind. It was easy to understand because it made sense. They're ghost types and-_

 _I get it. You don't need to explain it. I know about the ways of the ghosts already. Just… what exactly does the fabric feel like? You've done this already, so what did it feel like?_

 _Like fabric from scarves or capes… that's why I call it "reality's fabric" instead of matter or stardust or whatever other people call it. I know it's not really fabric, but that's what it feels like to me._

 _Of course it does. Why wouldn't it… Wait. I think I feel something._

The lights grabbed onto something in the darkness. They tightened their grip on the unseen object and then pushed away from each other with all their might, as if trying to pry something apart.

"Aaargh!"

A Weavile stumbled out of the darkness where the light once was. She fell forward and nearly tripped over her own feet, but caught herself just in time.

 _Gah, there was no resistance at all. It was like trying to rip paper._

 _You thought it would be hard to open, Glace?_

 _Well seeing as how it's what holds the universe together, yes, I did think it would take quite a bit of force to widen. I didn't think it would open that easily, not to mention suck me in like that._

Glace panted for a brief moment before she looked down at her claws to see the iridescent glow slowly dim. It wasn't long before the light vanished completely, leaving her claws as white as they had been before, untouched by the strange energy.

She glanced behind her and noticed that she was no longer looking back at the interior of her home. Now, there was nothing but a large brick wall towering over her in the darkness. She couldn't help but stare at that unremarkable wall, still basking in the epiphany that it was no longer her house.

 _So we really can travel through dimensions. We just need to widen tears to do that._

 _That's right! And don't worry; this won't hurt the multiverse. Little tears always close right back up after you use them. It's the big ones like the one you saw back in your dimension that don't fix themselves. I know you were thinking about that when I told you what we had to do._

Glace frowned at the sound of that. So it seemed Sonata could hear some her thoughts now that she was inside of the Weavile's head. Glace had suspected that the Noivern could hear her thoughts now that she actually lived inside of Glace's mind, but she had never known for sure.

 _What, you don't like me hearing your thoughts?_

 _No._

 _Oh, it's not too big of a deal. You can hear all my thoughts. There's really no point in hiding anything from each other anymore when we're sharing a mind now._

 _Weren't you the one demanding privacy once I saw pieces of your life while you were in that guild with that Suicune?_

Sonata didn't say anything. Glace peered into the darkness that was her subconscious using her mind's eye, but she couldn't see the Noivern anywhere. Perhaps she no longer had a form now that she had been assimilated. Maybe her Noivern form had ceased to exist the second she merged with Glace.

 _Fine. I won't respond to your thoughts if they're super private or uncomfortable. I'll still hear all your thoughts, but I'll try to ignore them the best I can. But only if you don't look at any of my memories._

 _Why can't I see your memories?_

Glace felt something. It was fleeting and left as quickly as it came, but in that brief moment, Glace felt a powerful longing to be somewhere that was not in this unknown dimension. Somewhere that didn't make her chest feel very heavy.

 _Because there's things in my memories I don't want to think about. Besides, isn't everyone entitled to some kind of privacy?_

 _Fair enough. I won't look at your memories then. I think I can tell which are yours and which are mine. And in return, try not eavesdrop on my private thoughts._

 _Of course._

The Weavile turned away from the wall and finally took in the rest of her surroundings. Even though there was not a single torch or illuminating orb to be seen, Glace could still make out the buildings and streets in the vicinity. She could tell from the structures of each of the buildings, the words stamped into the signs, the variety of colors of each of the structures that could only be seen in the day, and how far apart they stood with one another that this was the recreational area of the city. The townsfolk most likely came to this part of the city to enjoy a good meal or to have a pleasurable time with others.

But most of all, she could see the great multiverse-wide tear looming in the sky near the city. She couldn't help but notice that the colors in that particular part of the tear seemed to be darker than the ones in her dimension. She wondered if that meant this dimension would fall to ruin sooner than her own.

 _What fragment is in this dimension? You know who we're looking for, don't you?_

 _Yeah, of course. I know who's in what dimension. So let's see… I think the fragment that ended up in this dimension is a Tranquill named Yore. I don't know exactly what he's doing right this second… but I do know he's in this part of the dimension._

 _And how do you know that? A dimension is a large place to search for one Pokémon._

 _I have a vague idea of which tears I need to use to get to everyone. At least, that's what happened with you. I didn't know where Granite Town was at all when I was trying to find you, but I just knew which tear would lead to you out of the hundreds of thousands to choose from. So I feel like the same thing would work with Yore._

 _But you don't know for sure. And how do you know what tears even lead to certain parts of each dimension?_

 _I just know, like I said. Instincts really. Maybe it's our original self telling me where to go._

 _So why won't it tell me the same information if we really are the same entity?_

 _Look Glace, I don't know how it works, alright? I'm just as lost as you are. I just woke up one morning, saw that tear in the sky, and then I got bombarded with all these crazy thoughts and names of Pokémon I've never even heard of before that apparently I need to find or else everybody in the entire multiverse is going to fall apart. I'm just working with what I have and trying not to think about it too hard. I'm pretty sure everything that got dumped into my head on that day isn't supposed to be understood by normal Pokémon._

… _Fine. I won't ask any more questions._

Glace then wondered if it was actually a good idea to ask more questions. While it did make sense that Sonata wouldn't be able to understand everything about how dimensional travel worked or whatever abilities she gained the moment she realized what she truly was, there were other aspects of everything that seemed puzzling. Why had Sonata been the one to remember so much about the fragments and not Glace? If the two of them were both supposedly fragments, why didn't Glace have the same vision the moment she saw the behemoth tear in her own dimension? Was Sonata a more superior fragment and had inherited more from their whole self? Or was there something else that Sonata wasn't telling Glace?

 _Glace, you know I'm not plotting something like some kind of mastermind. You'd be able to tell when you can see all of my thoughts._

 _You're spying on my private thoughts again._

 _Oh... oh I am. Sorry. But really, I'm not going to hurt you. I promise!_

 _I have no way of knowing for sure at moment._

 _Ah, alright fine, be that way. Let's just get some rest. No point in trying to find him right now since we're probably going to have to look into everyone's houses to find him and there's way too many houses for us to do in one night. And he might not even be in this city. So let's sleep in a tree or something._

 _Noivern sleep in trees. Weavile don't. I'll find a cave of some sorts in the outskirts of this city. Or perhaps an abandoned burrow._

 _There's nothing wrong with sleeping in trees. In fact, most of my best nights were when I slept in trees! Just the way you hang from them with your tail and your feet and how great your wings feel when they're wrapped all snuggly around your body…_

 _Sure, if you don't mind the thought that the branch might break and that you'll split your head open the second you hit the ground._

 _Aw what? When has that ever happened to anyone?_

 _Well I'm not going to be finding out, because I'll be sleeping in a burrow tonight. I don't think it's possible to split my head open when I'm below the ground._

 _Fine fine, be that way. Go find your stupid burrow and sleep inside the dirt like a Bunnelby. Don't blame me if some Seviper or something comes in while you sleep and tries to eat you!_

Glace rolled her eyes, but thought nothing more as she silently crept through the city until she found a small hill with a tower mill sitting at the very summit. She gazed at it for a moment, and then when she realized she couldn't see any lights near the mill, she hurried up the hill. When got to the mill, it didn't take her long to notice a small burrow resting nearby, just big enough for her to squeeze into. She quietly approached the hole, and then remained still for a moment and listened for any sounds of breathing or scurrying within the burrow. When she could not hear anything, she got on all fours and crawled into the warren.

When she got to the very end of the den, she felt her way around with her claws. She poked their sharp points into the walls surrounding her in case a stray feral might have eluded her hearing. When she found that no one was with her, the Weavile settled onto her side. The burrow was quite small, so small that it prevented Glace from being able to roll over much, but it would do. She would only be here until morning anyway. Perhaps if she had to stay another night in this dimension, she could find a way to stay at an inn within the city.

Glace took in a deep breath, and then closed her eyes.

She briefly wondered when she had last slept in a burrow before she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Glace awoke when she could no longer ignore the heat of the midday sun beating down on her through the burrow's opening. She stretched to the best of her ability in the cramped little chamber, and then slowly crept out of the warren.

Once she found herself outside, she got to her feet and rubbed at her eyes until she no longer had a sharp light obscuring her vision. She was still on the same hill as last night, but now a few flying-types roosted at the very top of the tower mill, all the while staying keeping a distance from the stationary sails.

And of course, she saw the dimensional tear in the sky, still looming near. The light of day did not dampen its ominous appearance in the slightest. She even thought that the colors seemed even darker than how they were last night.

 _I'm not imaging all of this, am I, Sonata?_

 _You're not, but I don't know if it means anything. It could just be that's how the tear looks in this dimension._

 _But it will grow if it's not closed up. It will get bigger._

 _Yeah, along with a few other things._

It was then that Glace saw something in her mind's eye. She saw herself peering over the edge of a cliff overlooking a great valley. Within that valley lay hundreds of black, charred sticks protruding a few feet out of the barren soil. Smoke wafted out of the black objects and rose into the sky, filling the air with a dreary, thin haze.

" _No one knows how it happened, Sonata,"_ said a strong, gravelly voice that Glace didn't recognize. _"According to our members who were scouting the area, Sycamore Forest was perfectly fine. One moment, all of the trees were as green as could be. And then the next moment, everything was suddenly in flames and burning to the ground at an astounding rate. There had been no predictions of forest fires in the near future."_

" _And are you sure some fire-type didn't set the place on fire?"_ said a voice that she knew was Sonata's. _"I've heard of that happening a few times. Everything catches on fire if there's enough dead wood."_

" _I'm afraid not. There are no fire Pokémon that live anywhere near the forest, and no one spotted any sort of Pokémon committing arson. The members said everything caught fire at once. There was no origin point nor did the fire work its way up the trees as should normally occur. Every single part of the tree, the trunk, the branches, the canopy, all of it became consumed by the fire at once."_

" _But how? What's this all supposed to mean?"_

" _I don't know. All I know is that this very concerning. First that tear appears in the sky, and then Sycamore Forest catches fire. With Sycamore Forest so close to our division, I cannot help but wonder if its abrupt decimation is a sign that our division will be infiltrated by the enemy. Perhaps they thought we resided in that forest and obliterated it as a means of snuffing all of us out. Perhaps that tear is their doing as well."_

" _Yeah… you're probably right. I can't imagine why else there'd be a big hole in the sky…"_

" _Regardless, that's all I wanted to speak to you about. Now that you know that, can you investigate what remains of Sycamore Forest and see if you can find anything? The other members told me they fled the scene the moment everything burst into flames. I would most certainly appreciate any sort of hint of what occurred in that forest."_

" _Oh, sure! Of course! I'll look around really carefully for you! I'll turn over every rock and look at every tree that's left! I bet something will show up if I do all that."_

" _Thank you, Sonata. I appreciate it."_

The vision ended, and Glace found herself back in the real world. It took her a moment to process what she had just witnessed.

 _I thought I wasn't allowed to see your memories._

 _I wanted you to see that memory. There's a difference. You'll know if it's a memory I don't want you to see._

 _How?_

 _You'll know. Trust me, you'll know. But anyway, that memory was back from when I knew the tear was bad news, but I didn't do anything about it. I think it was a couple of days after I figured out I was a fragment and everything._

 _So you think the tear brings destruction to vicinities nearby._

 _Yeah. I know it looks like a correlation, but I found the circumstances around the fire to be too strange for it to be just that. I mean, what kind of forest fire doesn't have some kind of starting point? I've never heard of a whole forest catching on fire like that._

Glace nodded slowly to herself. It was a bit of stretch of logic, especially since Sonata had only seen the aftermath, but she could honestly understand why Sonata thought the dimensional tear caused the forest fire.

She then started to think about that voice, the one that wasn't Sonata's. She could still hear it echoing softly against the walls of her mind.

 _That other voice in the memory was your guild leader's, wasn't it? The Suicune?_

Glace suddenly found she could no longer hear the Suicune's voice. She grasped for it, but for whatever reason, she couldn't recall the legendary's booming words.

 _Yeah. It was. He's the one that helped me figure out what happens when a tear gets larger. So if we don't want anything like that happening here or in our dimensions or in any of the other ones, we need to hurry up and find Yore. I'm pretty sure things just get even worse the more the tears grow and get into the other dimensions. There were a few other things that happened in my dimension before I left it that were hard to see…_

Glace could practically feel Sonata nudging her back to the inner parts of the city. However, though she did wonder why Sonata had shut down the conversation so swiftly with the mere mention of her leader, she knew there was no reason to pursue the conversation. The Suicune meant nothing to either of them anymore, now that Sonata had left him behind in her home dimension. She probably didn't want to think about how his greatest spy had abandoned him with no warning.

Besides, they did need to find Yore. Glace knew that Sonata probably wasn't lying about the tears and their immediate effects on the dimensions.

Even still, Glace kept the Suicune at the back of her mind as she made her way down the hill and went back into the city.

Much unlike the night before, all of the streets were congested with Pokémon of all shapes and sizes. Some were little hatchlings running in and out of the streets, all the while laughing gleefully. Others were adults in the midst of their daily routine, slogging their way from one building to the next with a vacant gaze or bartering with merchants. Sometimes they had hatchlings with them, who clung tight to their fur all the while eying everything they could surrounding them.

Everyone seemed to be preoccupied with something of the sort, making no one bat an eye at Glace the moment she entered the main square of the city.

Glace watched a Lopunny with a small group of bouncing Buneary pass her by. From the way that the Buneary tugged at her paws and pointed at every single vendor they passed by, begging her to make a purchase, she knew all those Buneary were most likely the Lopunny's hatchlings.

 _Yore is a Tranquill, right?_

 _That's right. I'm not seeing any Tranquill around here though. I don't see any flying Pokémon actually._

 _I imagine that they wouldn't walk through the streets when they have wings. Maybe there's a place where they all rest at various points during the day._

 _Yeah, we could try looking for a place like that!_

Glace forced herself into the busy and street and carefully blended into the crowd. She ignored the Luxio and Jolteon shoving into her sides and continued walking, all the while keeping an eye for any sort of roosting spot.

For quite a long while, Glace saw nothing that fit her description. As she continued to weave down many roads with the crowd of Pokémon, she only saw more structures more fit for the land Pokémon. Namely, a few dozen vendors from the travelling merchants, even more settlements that served as reasonable markets for goods and wares, and a small number of recreational buildings such as a pub and arena for small gladiator competitions that happened in weekly spurts. She had no doubt that a Tranquill could be in any of those places, but to search every single building she saw for the elusive bird would be a colossal waste of time. Thus, she kept moving forward, ever persistent in finding that peculiar Tranquill.

After what felt like half a day's passing, Glace finally saw something that could be considered a sufficient roost; a tower mill atop a hill in the center of town. How she had missed it when it towered over the entire city was beyond her, but she wasted no time in hurrying to it and climbing up the great hill. It was steep and uneven, and several times her footing broke from underneath her, but she did not relent. She only continued climbing up that hill, digging her front claws into the dirt if the path proved to be too steep for bipedal creatures.

When Glace reached the top of the hill the mill stood upon, she realized that it looked exactly like the mill she had slept near the night before, except twice as large. It watched over the city with the silence and fortitude of a mighty guardian from ancient times. Even with the astounding number of its bricks chipped and discolored, it still stood strong, never to be toppled by time.

And there, sitting atop that behemoth, were dozens and dozens of flying-types. Murkrow, Pidgey, Sparrow, Swellow, Noctowl, Natu, Altaria, and even some Drifblim were just a few of the species that Glace could see from where she stood.

They roosted everywhere they possibly could on that mill. Some sat at the very top of the pointed cap, others on the stationary sails in little groups. Even more sat in the panes of the makeshift windows. Glace could see the vague outlines of other flying-types inside of the mill, hidden in the shadows.

Glace released a deep breath as soon as she saw all those birds. Surely Yore had to be one of them. She could see a few Tranquill amongst the sails, and who knew how many more inside the mill itself. This was undoubtedly the perfect spot she could find a flying-type in this city.

The Weavile approached the tower mill and then entered inside. At least a hundred birds rested within the mill, sitting on protruding objects of all sorts whether it be bricks, steel or wooden beams, or the very gears of the mill. The moment Glace stepped into the mill, all of the feathered Pokémon puffed up their feathers and locked eyes with her.

A particularly large Staraptor sitting above Glace let out a menacing hiss and slowly spread its wings apart.

"I'm not a feral," Glace quickly stated as she slowly held out her claws. "I'm not here to hurt you."

All of the feathered ones continued to keep their gazes on her. She heard even more of them near the very top of the mill let out more hisses. Glace started to wonder if she had made a mistake and these Pokémon were all feral. After all, not a single one had said anything to her. It would also explain why they would bother to have the mill as a roosting place when it probably had use to the city.

Then Glace noticed that not a single one of the feathered Pokémon had flown away since she entered the mill. Wild Pokémon fled the second they saw a dangerous creature, or they attacked if they felt provoked. Only certain land Pokémon kept still in times of danger, particularly the Deerling.

These were most definitely all civil birds.

"I'm not going to attack or steal any eggs you might have here," Glace said again with a frown. "Besides, do you really think I'd attack with so many of you here by myself? I know you'd all peck me to death the second I touched any of you."

The flying-types kept their hostile poses for a moment longer, and then tucked their wings back into their bodies once more.

"Why are you here, Weavile?" the Staraptor from earlier asked. "Not many land Pokémon ever come to these mills during the days of no wind."

"I'm looking for someone I thought might be here," Glace replied. "Have you heard of a Tranquill named Yore?"

Many of the flying-types muttered amongst each other. Glace tried not to look at them as she kept her gaze fixed on the Staraptor.

"Yore, you say?" it asked. "I'm afraid I don't know any Tranquill or Unfezant of that name. Are you sure that's his name?"

"I'm sure," Glace said with a nod before finally bringing her gaze up to the other whispering birds. "Have any of you heard of a Tranquill named Yore?"

All of them shook their heads. Glace glanced through all of the various feathered creatures sitting above her, searching for any Tranquill in the roost. She spotted a grand total of five from where she stood, possibly more behind other Pokémon out of her line of sight.

"Can I have all of the Tranquill come down here for a moment?" Glace asked. "I think I'm misremembering his name. It won't take long; I know who I'm looking for."

 _I will know him when I see him, right?_

 _Yeah! It'll be just like when you saw me back at your house. You'll feel like you've known him from somewhere even though you guys have never met before._

 _Good._

Seven Tranquill left their resting spots and settled themselves before Glace. They fluffed their feather for just a moment before standing up tall, all of them eying her cautiously. Glace held her breath as she slowly looked over each of the Tranquill, looking into each of their eyes for a few seconds before moving onto the next Tranquill in line.

Not a single one seemed familiar to her. In fact, they all seemed remarkably similar to one another with only subtle features to set themselves apart from each other, such as a longer beak or sharper talons.

"None of you are the one I'm looking for," Glace said as she resisted a long sigh. "You can go back to roosting."

The group of Tranquill wasted no time in returning back to their resting spots. Glace watched them fly up into the higher parts of the mill, and then made her way outside. As she left behind the mill, she eyed the Tranquill standing in the windows and on the sails, hoping that one of them would be Yore. But as she had expected, not a single one rang a bell to her. They were all complete strangers to her.

Glace turned away from the mill and looked out into the horizon. She could see the sun already beginning its descent, and it wouldn't be much longer until it became the full night. Her entire day had been fruitless.

She had to resist grabbing at her ears and pulling them toward the ground.

 _Are you sure that you don't know anything about Yore except that he's a Tranquill?_

 _Nope. Just that he's a Tranquill and that he's in this part of the dimension._

 _This part of the dimension is still a very large place. It'll take entire weeks or months to locate him at this rate._

 _Yeah, I know… but those are the only things I've got on him._

 _Weren't you a spy? Wasn't it your job to hunt Pokémon down?_

 _Not really. I was told exactly where to find my Pokémon of interest. I didn't need to do any sort of tracking. I just snuck in, got the information I needed, and then went back to the guild. Like I said before, you were only easy to find because I knew exactly where in the dimension to find you. I knew you were in a very specific town in a very specific part of that town._

 _And you don't know why that is?_

 _Nope. But if I had to guess… maybe it was because our original self wanted me to find you first?_

 _Why would it want that?_

 _I don't know. It's the only explanation I can come up with since you're not really all that special... no offense. I just mean like you don't have any special powers like being able to see the future or god-like powers or-_

 _I get it. I'm only a boring dojo trainer. Which begs the question even more of why I was so easy to track._

 _Well did something happen before you became a dojo trainer? Maybe you used to do something that our original self thought was really useful and-_

Glace growled under her breath. She felt something shudder deep within her body the moment she did that.

 _I wasn't anyone special. I was just a Sneasel in a small clan of other Sneasel and Weavile. We never did anything of significance. We only roamed the land like nomads. We didn't interact much with society other than to sometimes purchase goods._

 _Okay… if you say so. You clearly don't want to talk about this so…_

 _I don't. I want to focus on finding Yore._

Sonata didn't say anything. Glace kept her stern gaze for a moment longer, and breathed in before exhaling deeply.

 _Let's get some rest. There's no point in looking for that Tranquill when it'll be night soon. He'll probably be sleeping._

 _Yeah… let's do that. Where are we going to sleep tonight?_

 _Back to that burrow I used last night._

 _We're not going to use an inn like you were thinking?_

 _No. I do have some currency stashed away in my crown, but I don't think my dimension's currency is the same as here now that I think about it._

 _Well I'm pretty sure they're the same since this dimension seems a whole lot like yours… but alright, do whatever._

Glace nodded, and then made her way back to the burrow as the night slowly settled upon the city.

* * *

The next morning, Glace went back to the city's main square. But this time, she didn't mix with the sea of Pokémon and followed everyone through the streets. She instead sat at the edge of a large, stone water fountain depicting multiple Feebas swimming around a single, majestic Milotic. She silently watched all of the Pokémon as they passed her. Most ignored her and carried on with their day, though she did catch a few pedestrians sharing a quick glance with her before continuing on their way.

Glace stared up at the sky and watched a couple of Swablu pass overhead.

 _If I were a Tranquill, where would I be in this dimension? What would I be doing if I could fly and be anywhere I wanted at any time of the day?_

The Weavile swung her legs back and forth as she continued watching the sky. It was most certainly a beautiful view. Other than the massive hole in the sky served as a constant reminder of the dimension's inevitable doom, the sky was as clear as could be. Endless blue stretched for miles and miles across the land, not a single puff of cloud to blemish the sky. Glace couldn't help but wonder what it felt like to be a part of that blue yonder, to spread your wings and let the wind carry you far away.

Glace could see herself flying through that sky. She could feel the wind pushing against her wings as she soared high above, so high that all of the Pokémon below were just as small as a Joltik. And yet, even as she flew so high and knew one wrong move could send her plummeting to her death, she felt no fear. The air was her domain, her rightful place to be as a winged creature.

She could see everyone leaving the spacious jungle that was their base, ready for a day's work. She saw Blaize and Torrent, the Charizard and Empoleon duo that always took the missions that paid the most, regardless of the job. Right behind them were Robin, Eli, and Hunter, the Staraptor flock that mainly took bounty hunt missions and nothing else. And behind those three was the main team of the guild, the one with the Virizion as the leader who…

Glace suddenly found herself back on her bench. The wind, the tiny Pokémon, the wings that were her arms… all of it was gone. She was a flightless Weavile again, rooted to the ground like all land creatures.

The Weavile rubbed at her eyes with the blunt part of her claws.

 _I didn't need to see a memory for that, Sonata._

 _Well you were really curious about flying, so I thought you wanted to know what it felt like. It was fun, wasn't it?_

It was. Glace didn't want to say it… but she did enjoy the temporary gift of flight. There was something almost magical in being able to defy the laws of gravity and be one with the seemingly infinite sky. But Glace realized it didn't matter in the end. She wouldn't be sprouting wings any time soon even though she actually had many red feathers protruding out of her head and ears.

 _We should find Yore. I think our next best option is to find a post office or whatever is this dimension's version of it. I imagine that a Tranquill would work there._

 _Yeah, I think that's a good idea! Lots of flying-types become delivery Pokémon. I would know; I used to work there before I joined my guild._

 _Is that so?_

 _Yeah! I only worked there for a few years, but I remember there were a lot of flying-types there. Especially the bigger birds like Staraptor and Unfezant. They could carry lots of mail and travel pretty fast._

 _I don't think Tranquill are all that large, but I'm sure the post office would have other reasons to hire a Tranquill. Let's see if we can find it._

Glace then went into the nearest store she could find and asked the clerk if there was a post office in the city. As she had hoped, there was a post office, and it was fairly close to where they were as well. She only needed to follow the street all the way to the end until she came across a large building at the very edge of the city. He assured her that she couldn't possibly miss it, especially if she watched the sky and followed any birds that carried bags around their bodies.

So, after receiving the information, Glace departed from the store and heeded the clerk's instructions. And sure enough, after following the road for a time, she found herself at the aforementioned building. Much to her surprise, the building was designed in such a way that it resembled a giant Pelipper settled into a nest. It was much bigger than she had anticipated as well, standing at least three Aggron's tall. Most of the paint had begun to peel off, making it seem that the entire building was molting.

It was quite a sight, something that Glace couldn't quite react to the moment she saw it. In her dimension, Pokémon didn't make any of their buildings resemble any sort of creature. They were always constructs of wood, steel, or stone, in the forms of domes and rectangles or a combination of both. No one seemed particularly interested in designing their buildings after Pokémon, at least not any that she had seen.

 _Really? Nobody made Pokémon buildings? There were a whole bunch of them in my dimension!_

 _It never looked ridiculous to you?_

 _Not really. I actually think it made everything a lot nicer. You know, something that brought color and life to the town. I always found the towns with those buildings with no color or imagination to them to be the dullest towns. Everyone in them was really boring._

Glace couldn't quite understand Sonata's thought process, but chose not to pursue the topic any further. Instead, she peeled her eyes away from the building's architecture and went into the main entrance. Once inside, she found that the interior was mostly a single, empty room. There was a small corner of packaging material and a counter to separate the workers from the customers, but that was it. Glace didn't see any packages of any sorts, nor mail holders to sort the customers' parcels. Even the post office seemed mostly devoid of Pokémon, save for a Wartortle and Wigglytuff giving packages and letters to a Decidueye behind a counter. A few flying-types did come inside through various windows in the building, but they never bothered to flutter down to where Glace stood. They only passed high above her into other rooms of the building behind the counter that Glace couldn't see into very well, presumably wherever the packages and letters remained until they were sent out all over the region.

For such a large building, it sure did feel awfully empty.

When the Wartortle and Wigglytuff left the counter, Glace wasted no time in taking their place. She was very much pleased to find that the counter was just about the perfect height for her, not towering over her nor far below her waist.

"Hello, what can I do for you?" the Decidueye asked with a beaming gaze.

"I'm looking for a Pokémon that I believe works here," Glace replied. "Have you heard of a Tranquill named Yore?"

"Yore you say? Hmmm. I don't know anyone of that name. Give me one moment and see if I can find anyone that might know that name."

The Decidueye then turned away and disappeared into one of the rooms behind the counter. Glace set her elbow on the counter and rested the side of her face in the palm of her elevated claw. She hoped that this wouldn't take long. Granted, there were no other customers waiting behind her, but she had no idea what could possibly be happening behind that counter.

 _Do you happen to know what happens here, Sonata?_

 _Just lots of sorting really. Sorting and putting certain packages in certain piles depending on where they're going._

 _I should have figured as much._

"Alright, I talked to some of the other employees here," the Decidueye then said as he reappeared from the other room. "Not a single one of them has ever heard of this Yore Tranquill. Are you sure that you aren't misremembering his name?"

"No, his name is Yore," Glace said with a shake of her head. "Are you sure you don't know someone by that name? Maybe you've seen his name on letters?"

"There are hundreds of letters and parcels sent every single day here, Weavile," the Decidueye stated. "We don't memorize the names; we sort them by location and then ship them out. If you want to find someone specifically by their name, I recommend going to the Guard Guild. They keep track of all the Pokémon in the city and update it daily depending on who enters and leaves. I don't know if they can tell you where the Pokémon lives, but they'd most certainly have names. If this Yore Tranquill you're talking about really lives in Lilac City, then his name should be with that guild."

"And where is this Guard Guild?"

"Right by the Miltank Café. Make a right as soon as you exit this place and then make a left on the next road you see. Follow it and you'll see it no time."

"Alright. Thank you."

The Weavile then removed her elbow from the counter and went on her way. She made sure to follow the road until she came across a new one a few minutes down, and then promptly turned left. She still couldn't see this supposed café or guild that the Decidueye spoke of, but she continued walking, knowing there was nothing else she could do.

Sure enough, after a while, Glace finally saw the guild. It was still quite a ways from her, at least another hundred steps away, but she could clearly see it in her sight. It towered over many of the other buildings with its bulky brick exterior, especially with that red flag atop the guild's tower.

 _This had better be the last place we check for Yore. I'm growing tired of running all over town for him._

 _I think they'll know where he is. They should know his name if he lives here, and if we can convince them, they can tell us where he lives._

 _Supposedly._

Glace then entered the guild and found herself in the lobby. Appearance-wise, it wasn't that much different from the post office. Most of the room remained vacant with only a few small chairs lining the sides of the room while a large counter stood at the back of the room. However, this time the receptionist was a Monferno with a dull shine in its eyes that didn't even seem to notice that Glace had just entered the building. It only seemed to be staring at the wall right next to Glace despite the fact that not a single painting or decoration lined the walls anywhere in the room. There was only endless brown, the color of the trees that Glace once used to dig her claws into during hunts.

She wondered if those trees still stood, bearing the scars left behind by her past self, or if some other Weavile had covered them with their own claw markings.

She wondered what those Sneasel and Weavile she had grown up with were doing right now after all so many years.

"Hello there, Weavile, can I help you?"

Glace looked back at the counter to see that the Monferno had its gaze set on her. Its previous dull, glazed over expression no longer seemed present.

"I'm looking for someone who lives in this city," Glace stated as she went closer to the Monferno. "I was told by the post office that you might be able to help me find them."

"That depends on the circumstances. Let's see who you're looking for. What's their name and species?"

"Yore. He's a Tranquill."

The Monferno cracked a smile. Glace even thought she saw the flame at the end of its tail flicker for just a moment.

"Ah, Yore. I haven't heard someone call that Tranquill by that name in quite a while," the Monferno said with a little laugh. "I almost forgot that's his real name."

Glace suddenly heard Sonata squeal. She had to resist flinching and covering her ears as the sound bounded off the walls of her mind. And yet, she found she couldn't retort the Noivern and hush her up. She couldn't blame Sonata for her reaction. She honestly couldn't resist smiling a little herself.

They had finally made progress in their search.

"So you do know him," Glace said to the Monferno.

"Of course! He's our best sentry in years," the Monferno said with a flick of its tail. "He always sits on the watchtower at the entrance of the city, keeping an eye on whoever comes here. He's quiet though, so you it's real easy to forget that he's there sometimes. Do you two know each other?"

"We're friends," Glace replied effortlessly. "Or, we were. We used to talk as hatchlings, but we went our separate ways after a while. I heard he was in this city, so I wanted to see how he's been."

"Ah, I understand. Well, you can go see him right now if you want. His shift doesn't end until sunset. I'm sure he wouldn't mind a little company up there on that lonely watchtower."

"I will."

And then, without wasting another second, Glace left the guild and hurried to the watchtower as quickly as she could manage. She could practically feel herself flying as she ran through the streets and made her way outside the city.

And yet, as she ran, she couldn't help but wonder why she moved with such zeal.

It was true that she would finally be able to see Yore after all this time. She could finally meet him and fulfill her original self's wishes of reuniting her other selves. The thought of that should have made her heart swell and fill her with a euphoric wonderment. And it did. She felt as though someone had just told her a pack of Piloswine slumbered nearby, bellies full from a recent feeding. She could still even hear Sonata cheering inside her head, practically bouncing about in her metaphysical form.

But Glace had never been like this before. Even in times there actually had been a pack of oblivious Piloswine she couldn't wait to descend upon and sink her claws into, she had never felt the need to rush to them. She had the patience and willpower to approach them cautiously and silently.

So why did she feel like she had to get to Yore as quickly as possible?

* * *

Sometime later, Glace found herself at the main entrance of Lilac City and before the very watchtower she sought. She could see how much it towered over her and the very city, along with the looming forest that stood between the gate and the mountains far into the distance. No matter what time of day it was, that tower would always be casting its dark shadow over something in its vicinity with unwavering dedication.

At the very top of that tower stood a single Pokémon, watching the forest with a stern gaze.

A Tranquill.

He was a bit difficult to pinpoint, given how much his grey feathers fit in with the tower's own dull colors and how he appeared to be the size of a Joltik from Glace's view, but she saw him all the same.

The feeling of familiarity struck her without hesitation. Though she couldn't even see the Tranquill's face from where she stood, she felt she could have recognized him anywhere, no matter the distance between them. Sometime ago, in a memory she could no longer recall, she had met him and the two had made some contact with one another. How and where they had met, Glace didn't know. Glace couldn't find the memory anywhere within her mind.

But she knew why she really felt this way. There was no other explanation when the two lived in separate dimensions.

Glace went to the watchtower's stairway, and then made her way up to the Tranquill. She made sure not to walk too quickly up the steps. She only breathed slowly as she climbed up the tower, ignoring the strong beats of her heart and the shaking in her claws.

 _This needs to go well, Sonata. This needs to work._

 _Don't be scared. He'll listen to us._

 _I didn't listen to you when you dropped that I was a fragment of someone else and that I had to come with you or else everyone would die._

 _Well no… but I went the wrong way with that whole thing. I really should have talked to you more before telling you all that. I was just really antsy because I saw the tear and…_

Glace looked out to the sky to see that the dimensional rip still remained in this dimension's sky. It didn't seem any bigger than it had been the other day however, bringing her some comfort.

 _What if he refuses to come with us? What do we do then?_

 _Um… we just keep bothering him I guess. Make him get that his dimension and our dimensions aren't going to be around for much longer if he doesn't cooperate. He'd have to understand eventually._

 _And what if he refuses to believe anything I tell him?_

 _Well I don't think that's really possible for him. I think all the fragments know, deep down, that something isn't right about them. Maybe they don't know it consciously, but once you start pointing out things out, like why they don't know who their parents are or why they feel like they know you even though you've never met, then they start knowing the truth. I mean, I guess they can try to deny it all they want like you were doing, but they know it's true. They might try to attack you though, if my experience with you is anything to go by, so…_

 _We'll see if it won't escalate to that. I'd rather not fight him; I was never a fan of dealing with flying-types. Stealing eggs from their nests was always my least favorite activity. Their talons and beaks leave nasty marks._

It was not long before Glace found herself at the very top of the tower. When she stepped off the stairway and onto the platform, she was quick to note that the Tranquill was no longer staring out into the forest. He now had his stern eyes fixed on her, feathers puffed out just a small amount.

He only stared at her for what couldn't have been more than a second when his eyes suddenly changed. His pupils rapidly dilated so that most of his golden eyes were nothing but black pools before immediately constricting into tiny pinpoints.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" he asked. "You look familiar."

"You might," Glace said nonchalantly. "You're familiar to me as well."

The Tranquill nodded as his pupils returned to their normal size. He unpuffed his feathers as well, but not before flapping his wings once.

"I was wondering why you were coming up here," the Tranquill stated. "No one comes up here except the sentry."

"I came up here because I wanted to talk to you," Glace replied.

"Why's that?"

"Because I think we used to know each other a time ago, maybe before you worked here. I happened to be in the area, and the Monferno at the Guard Guild said I could find you here."

"I see. I do feel that I remember you from somewhere, so perhaps I did know you at one point. Come over here then. It will be easier to talk to you while I work. Perhaps I will remember you if we continue talking."

Glace approached the edge of the platform and stood next to the bird. She put her claws on top of the wall that boxed them into the tower before glancing over at the Tranquill. He didn't seem to be paying attention to her anymore. He only kept his eyes on the forest below, unmoving from his perch.

"So you're a sentry, are you?" Glace asked.

"Yes. I watch this forest every day and write down who wants to enter the city, why, and where they came from," the Tranquill answered.

"And how long do you stay up here?"

"From dawn until dusk every single day."

"And you don't ever get bored of being up here all by yourself, watching this forest all day long?"

The Tranquill didn't say anything. However, he didn't have to. Glace saw him open his beak for a moment before promptly shutting it. She even saw him fidget in place for just a moment.

"There's nothing wrong with being bored up here," Glace said. "I would be bored as well if I had to watch this forest every single day of my life."

Again, the Tranquill said nothing. Glace sighed as she gripped the platform with her claws and looked out into the forest. This small talk was going nowhere. She wasn't even sure if she was doing it correctly. It had been quite a while since she had made idle chatter with another Pokémon like this.

 _Should we just tell him why we're here? I don't think he's interested in talking._

 _I'm not sure. There's nothing for us to talk about, but I don't want to alarm him with the information out of nowhere. There has to be a way for me to transition into-_

"What's your name, Weavile?" the Tranquill asked, prompting Glace to look back at him. "You never gave me your name and I still can't remember it."

"You're right, I didn't. My name is Glace," she answered simply.

"Glace. Hmm, that name does sound familiar. But I don't remember a Sneasel or Weavile anywhere in my memories. I feel like there was one in my life, but there are no actual memories of one anywhere in my mind. Are you sure that you're not mistaking me for someone else? There are many other Tranquill in this city."

"No, I'm sure you're the right Tranquill. Because you're Yore, aren't you?"

The Tranquill seemed to freeze in place, as if someone had petrified him right then and there. He became so still, in fact, that Glace worried that she could just touch him with one claw, and he would go careening off the watchtower and plummet to his death.

"Your name is Yore, isn't it?" Glace asked again.

"How do you know that name?" the Tranquill asked in a quiet voice.

"Because… that's your name. You told me that was your name."

The Tranquill turned to Glace. He leaned toward her by a small amount and ruffled his back feathers. Glace took a subtle step backwards and kept a close eye on his beak. She knew that posture in birds all too well.

"I don't remember there ever being a Sneasel in my life when I was still called by that name," the Tranquill stated.

"You told me," Glace said in return. "Do you have a different name now?"

"Yes, it's Patience. No one's called me Yore for years."

"Why did you change your name to Patience? Yore is a good name."

The Tranquill's dark expression didn't break. Glace slowly spread out her claws and raised them toward her chest. If this Tranquill actually intended on attacking her, he'd go for her eyes first. That's what all of the flying-types did when they saw a Weavile or Sneasel trying to reach their nest, especially if you were the one who had to distract the flying-types. You had to antagonize them and lead them away from the nest while someone else stole all the eggs. If you weren't careful and didn't retreat quickly enough, they would ram a beak into your eye socket. Glace had seen it a few times.

All those Sneasel falling backwards and screaming as they clutched at their eyes, all while the flying-types flew out of their nest and pecked away at the Sneasel's body…

"I didn't change my name; my guild did in a way."

Glace blinked, and she found herself with Patience once again. He had turned away from her in the time she had been thrust into her gruesome memories and resumed his watch over the forest. She noticed that the borderline malevolent glimmer in his eyes no longer seemed present. She only saw a melancholy dullness, as if his very life essence had been sucked right out of him.

"It's a nickname," Patience went on. "It's what they decided to call me after I stayed as their sentry for so long. No one else has stayed on the shift as long as I have. But I don't mind the name. I don't like to be called Yore anyway. It reminds me of times I prefer not to think about."

The Tranquill released a sigh.

"I'm sorry for how I was acting," he then said. "I'm usually not like that. I'm only not used to someone calling me that name, especially someone I can't remember too well."

"I understand," Glace said as she lowered her claws. "I know what it feels like to not want to remember the past."

The Tranquill nodded. Glace followed his gaze to see that he was no longer watching the forest. He now kept his eye on the dimensional tear looming over the woods. Though it remained quite far from where the two stood, Glace thought she could see something crackling within its chaotic and colorful depths.

She then looked back at Patience. He seemed so serene, so oblivious to what destruction that tear would soon be responsible for. He only watched it the same way Glace might watch the flowing water in a gentle river. She had the strangest feeling he would never understand anything about the tear, even when it tore apart the multiverse. He would never know he could have stopped all of that death if he had just realized who he truly was.

Glace slowly breathed in and flexed her claws.

"Patience, I need to tell you something," she said. "We've never actually met before. You might think we have, but we haven't."

"Why do you say that?" Patience asked. "Earlier you insisted that you had met me before."

"I know I did, but that was because I knew you'd recognize me. The truth is… weren't not actually a Weavile and Tranquill. We're actually fragments of one being that split itself apart a long time ago and got thrown into different dimensions."

Patience said nothing. He didn't seem to freeze up as he had when Glace called him Yore, but the air around him changed and he would open his beak periodically even though he didn't seem to have any intentions of talking.

"Do you see that hole in the sky? That's why I'm here, talking to you," Glace continued. "I don't understand it completely, but that hole is going to get bigger and spread all over the place. It's going to leak into other dimensions until it consumes all of them. Then, it'll collapse all of them and kill everyone living inside the dimensions. Our original self wants to stop that from happening. It wants all of its fragments to merge back together so it can close up that hole.

"And it's not just the two of us; there are more fragments out there. They're all out there in their own dimensions. Maybe some of them know their fragments, maybe some of them are just as oblivious as I was before I saw that tear in the sky. But I need you to come with me so we can stop that tear from destroying everything."

"You say that you want me to come with you," Patience then said, keeping a flat tone. "But what exactly do you mean by that?"

"I mean that I need you to merge with me. You won't disappear, you'll still exist inside my head and you can talk to me all you want, but you won't have your body anymore. You'll become me, in some ways."

Patience nodded, but made no further remarks. Glace wasn't sure what to think of his reaction. She couldn't gauge what he was thinking with how quiet he remained. She almost wished he was more outspoken like Sonata.

"I know it's difficult to believe," Glace then said. "I went through the same. I know it's difficult to want to leave your dimension behind and accept that you're not who you think you are. There's still a number of things about all of this I don't understand. But Patience, I really do need you to come with me. My dimension is going to be destroyed if you don't, and so will yours. Everyone you ever cared about is going to die."

Patience closed his eyes. Glace remained where she was, knowing there was nothing else she could do. She knew that she could perhaps explain everything a bit more, like about the vision she had or that Sonata currently resided inside her head. Perhaps the information would have convinced Patience to come with her more, but she knew it was just as likely to scare him off. She could only share so much information with him at a time. She knew that the information she had already given Patience was sure to make him suffer a small existential crisis.

She could only wait and keep the silence between the two of them.

For a while, all Patience did was continue to watch the dimensional tear with his glazed over expression. He would sometimes gaze down at the forest, presumably to see if anyone wanted to enter the city, but mostly kept his gaze to that otherworldly omen ripping apart the sky.

And then, after what seemed for like an eternity later, he finally brought his gaze back to Glace.

Glace saw herself in the rich gold that was Patience's eyes. She saw everything that she was and everything that she wasn't. She saw the part of herself that lived in this dimension, forced to watch the same forest every single day without end. The part of herself that had lost the willpower and desire to leave behind her monotonous life and go elsewhere.

A complete shell of who she once was and everything she once stood for.

Patience turned away just before the Weavile could lose herself in his eyes.

Then, he opened his wings and flew away.


	4. Come Back

Patience was gone.

Just a short time ago, Glace had been standing on the watchtower with him. She had been attempting a conversation with him before finally giving up and telling him her true reasons for seeing him. He had been listening to her, taking all of the information in silently and with little more response than the occasional nod.

Now he was nowhere to be seen. He had flown away, just like that, silently and unceremoniously. The spot he once used as a perch now lay empty. Now only Glace stood atop that watchtower without a single clue of how she wanted to react.

He didn't want to merge back together, that much was obvious. He wouldn't have left if he intended to help Glace. But could she have done anything to make it so that he might have wanted to go with her? Was it the small talk? Had she not talked to him enough to make him comfortable around her? She had only spoken to him for a few minutes before she finally cut to the chase, and even then, their conversation wasn't pleasant. She was honestly surprised that he hadn't told her to leave after she brought up his former name.

Should she have spent more time with him before revealing his true nature? Should she have pretended to befriend him and spend more time pretending that she wanted to understand him? Should she have invested many days, if not weeks into developing a faux friendship with him so that he would have a reason to listen and perhaps consider helping her?

 _It's too late for that now, Glace. We're just going to have to accept that we messed up with Patience. But maybe we can try what you were thinking with the next fragment we go after._

Glace sighed as she rubbed her temples with the blunt side of her claws.

 _I thought you said you wouldn't be responding to my thoughts unless I direct them toward you._

 _Oh right… sorry. You just sounded like you were really upset about everything and I wanted to let you know that it's okay…_

 _Except that this isn't okay. Patience is gone. We lost this dimension's fragment and we have no idea where he went or if we'll ever see him again._

 _Well we're probably not going to be able to chase after him, I know that. You'd have to be able to fly if you wanted to ever catch up to him._

 _Which I can't._

 _But I don't think that Patience is going to disappear forever. I think we will see him again. In fact, let's wait here a little while and see if he comes back. He's got a job here, doesn't he? And he seems like a really diligent Pokémon who wouldn't abandon his shift all day. I think he'll come back here after a few hours or so. So let's just wait here and see what happens._

Glace looked down into the forest sprawled out before her. She saw no Pokémon emerging from its depths, though she knew that probably wouldn't be for long. There would be an influx of Pokémon that wanted to enter the city in due time. She imagined today was the same as any other day.

She then looked behind her to see a piece of paper lying beside a small ink pad. Upon grabbing the paper and looking over it, she saw that there were multiple lines of scrawl upon its surface. But much to her surprise, she found she could read the scrawl. Patience's dimension had the exact same written language as her own dimension. She could clearly read the multiple species listed on that parchment along with a city of origin and reason for visiting the city without any difficulty.

 _I would have thought that this dimension would have had different symbols in their written language._

 _Well I'm not an expert at dimensions or anything like that, but I think they're the same because some dimensions are really similar to each other. Like my dimension has quite a lot in common with your dimension and Patience's with how your society works. At least, from what I've seen so far. A different dimension doesn't exactly have to mean everything looking really different and weird, like something you'd see after you eat way too many oran berries._

 _Maybe._

Glace glanced over the information on the paper a couple more times before looking back at the forest. She still didn't see any Pokémon in her sights.

 _I think I'll stay here and wait for Patience, like you said. But I'll do his job for him too, while I'm here. It'll give me something to do while I wait for him._

 _Really? Even though you thought it was super boring?_

 _It is boring, but someone needs to do this. I have a feeling that Patience's supervisor won't be pleased once he sees an incomplete list. I don't want his supervisor to be upset with him._

 _Aww. That's really nice of you to take his place. I didn't know you could be so sweet._

Glace didn't respond. She only sat down and peered through the gaps of the barricade surrounding the watchtower's pinnacle. She still didn't see any Pokémon, but didn't avert her gaze this time. Eventually someone would appear, and she would have to question them. It would be easy though. She just needed to ask where they had come from and why they were visiting. Then if she deemed them safe, she would allow them into the city and write down their answers to her questions along with their species name. It seemed simple.

She couldn't help but wonder why Patience never wrote down the names of any of the Pokémon, however. She knew that there had to be multiple amounts of a single species in the city at a time. Names would certainly make it easier to verify who exactly was in the city, and this wasn't a dimension where Pokémon only went by their species name. Patience was proof of that.

Maybe writing names was useless. Maybe the ones at the Guard Guild knew that anyone could use a fake name. Or maybe it was just like in Glace's dimension where someone was allowed to change their name every time they evolved. Tracking down Pokémon through names would be pointless in that case. Perhaps the species name and their supposed last location was enough to keep track of all the Pokémon entering the city. You couldn't change your species that easily unless you were a Ditto or of the Zoroark line, and even then, there were always hints. Rarely could Ditto ever get every single detail about a Pokémon correct. They would always have something off about their forms, like an Oddish with tan leaves or Bulbasaur without spots on its forehead. The Zorua were similar in that they always kept their tail in all their forms, no matter how hard they tried. So if a Pokémon refused to let you see their backs, they were probably a Zorua in disguise.

It was the Zoroark that were the most tricky. They could perfectly replicate any form they saw, right down to their voice. It was quite possible to never know you were talking to a Zoroark when they wanted to deceive you. However, there was one way to know if you were speaking with a Zoroark. One reliable way that Glace's clan leaders had taught her.

Their shadows would never change. If you ever had even the slightest of suspicions that were talking to a Zoroark in disguise, all you had to do was peer at their shadow and you would see their true form in that dark outline. Of course, the Zoroark knew this as well, so they stayed out of brightly lit areas where the sun might cast their shadow. They stayed in the shade of trees, in the dark corners of the streets, and inside buildings where the sun couldn't hit them. So if you ever saw a Pokémon that refused to come out into the light or stayed far away from any illuminating orbs in the night, then they were probably a Zoroark.

Of course, Glace had never met a Zoroark. They never seemed to live anywhere near where her clan ventured to nor did any ever live in Granite Town. So for all she knew, everything her clan leaders was a lie. But she highly doubted that. They had been correct with everything else they had taught about species and how to treat them.

" _Never let a Raticate's teeth anywhere near you. If one of them ever bites your claw, you might never be able to use that claw again. Strike it from above if you ever hunt one down."_

" _Lone Litleo are never to be bothered. They are usually alone because they're preparing to become Pyroar. They may even evolve when you fight one. Run away if this happens. You will slowly burn to death if you stay."_

" _Grumpig are nothing to be intimidated by. They can't enter your mind and manipulate you. However, don't bother coating your claws in ice; their body fat protects them from the cold."_

 _Hey, I think I see someone, Glace._

Glace peered at the forest's entrance with squinted eyes. As it turned out, Sonata was right. There was a tall, elegant Pokémon of green and white emerging from the forest and making its way to the city. Glace only had to study it for a few seconds to know what it was. One of the dojo instructors had been the very same species.

"Gardevoir, why are you coming to this city and where did you come from before?" Glace called down.

Glace had to pause after she finished yelling. It felt wrong to be yelling so loudly, to speak anything above a borderline monotone. She couldn't remember the last time she had to yell like that.

When the moment passed, Glace brought her attention back to the Gardevoir to find that it had stopped. It now looked up at her, watching her with its red eyes that contrasted so greatly with the rest of its face.

"You're not that Tranquill that's normally here," the Gardevoir spoke plainly in a surprisingly male voice.

"No, Patience isn't here right now," Glace returned. "I'm filling in his shift."

"I see. Well good for you for doing that. He needs a break. His thoughts always sounded so dreary whenever I saw him up there."

"Why do you want to come he-"

"Yes, you want to know why I'm here. I won't say anything more. I'm a resident of Lilac City. My name is Ryle and I just returned from a visit to Rose Village."

Glace studied the Gardevoir further. From her distance, she couldn't tell much about him. She wanted to believe that he was telling the truth and that it was okay to let him into the city, but Glace didn't know for sure. She couldn't see any flicker in his eyes from so far up or a resistance to put his arms behind his back.

 _Just let him in. He's okay._

 _You don't know that._

 _Nah, he's okay. I've seen a lot of shady Pokémon thanks to a lot of enemy base infiltrations. He's not a bad Pokémon. You can let him go._

"Fine, you can go inside the city," Glace decided.

"Thanks."

Glace watched the Gardevoir go past the watchtower and kept an eye on him until he made his way into the city. He didn't do anything noteworthy throughout his entire stroll, only walking at a steady, lax pace, as if he didn't have a single care in the world.

When the Gardevoir disappeared into the city, Glace took out the paper lying on the ground near her and wrote down all of his information right below Patience's last entry. Afterwards, she set the paper down and resumed her watch over the forest.

After several minutes passed and not a single Pokémon emerged from the forest, Glace brought her gaze up to the sky. She could still see the dimensional hole tearing through the endless blue, its ethereal mass twisting and slithering around with such vigor. She couldn't help but wonder why the colors within the tear hadn't spilled out into the dimension, consuming the forest with its eldritch taint. That had happened in Sonata's dimension already, if her hypothesis proved to be correct, and that tear had been in the sky of this dimension for a few days now. Glace didn't understand why there didn't seem to be any anomalies occurring in this dimension if so.

She supposed it didn't matter in the end, however. All she needed to care about was Patience. He was her only reason for being in this dimension. She didn't have anything else to be concerned with in this dimension.

At least, not anything at the moment. There was the fact that this dimension would collapse if she didn't convince all of her other selves to join with her, but she didn't need to worry about that now. She couldn't. She had a feeling that she was nowhere close to finding all of the fragments.

She couldn't worry when she was nowhere close to reaching her goal.

Glace brought her gaze back to the forest. She still saw no one amongst the sea of trees, nothing to stand out amongst the seemingly endless green and brown.

 _He has to hate this job. He has to. He can't enjoy sitting here all day._

 _I'm pretty sure nobody likes this job. I know the sentry at this one guild I visited a couple times found it boring even though he never said anything. He hated floating below the ground, waiting for Pokémon to recite this poem so he could let them inside._

 _But why wouldn't he go with me? He's stuck here in this job; I know he is. I offered him a way out from this boring job, but he still rejected me._

 _Probably has something to do with the fact that you said he'd lose his body if he went with you… I don't think a lot of Pokémon would be willing to go along with that, no matter how unhappy they are with their life situation._

 _I shouldn't have told him that. I should have only said I needed him to come with me and that I could give him the freedom he wants. I should have convinced him to leave this dimension and then tell him what I really need him to do._

Glace still couldn't believe she had told him everything after such a pitiful amount of small talk. She could have done more to make him more comfortable around her and prone to believing the earth-shattering information she had to drop on him. After all, she remembered her encounter with Sonata and how poorly it turned out. She knew she couldn't replicate that if she wanted any chance of success. She had to be cautious about how to approach the fragments with the truth about who they really were.

It should have been easy. She knew how to be cautious. She knew how to strategize and follow a plan carefully, no matter what unexpected events could ensue. She had done it too many times in her clan days. She diligently followed the plans she gave to her clan mates when was old enough to lead the hunts, no matter what happened. Even if her teammates fled when the Gogoat they were hunting suddenly struck two of them and knocked them out instantly, she remained committed to the plan.

And yet, when she saw how apathetically Patience gazed at the dimensional tear and how oblivious he truly was to the destruction it would bring, she couldn't resist. She couldn't stop herself from telling him everything.

Why? Why had she done that?

Glace stared out into the empty forest for a long moment, taking in the lulling green. It wasn't long before it began to grate on her, sending waves of discomfort through her body that made it almost impossible for her to sit still.

She needed to leave. She couldn't stay up here. The more she stayed here, the more her mind would wallow in those self-loathing thoughts. It was the consequence of having to perform a task that involved low stimulus; your mind wandered. It would think of anything it could while you stayed chained down to the job until you could go home. It craved excitement, craved stimuli. So when it didn't have anything to focus on and process such as a hunt or a fellow Pokémon's conversation, it would delve within itself. It would ponder and it would analyze anything it could find deep within the subconscious, and it would bring up thoughts that you didn't know you had. Sometimes this led to good; Glace knew this was the foundation of meditation. Through isolating your mind from everything else except itself, you could find thoughts within yourself that held answers to dilemmas that might currently be plaguing your life.

But not always. Sometimes the mind would uproot the thoughts buried deep in the darkness that you kept there because you didn't know how to face them. It would bring them into the light and force you to view them. Once you saw them, you couldn't escape from them. Your mind wouldn't put those dreary thoughts back into your subconscious so swiftly. It would keep them at the front of your mind, not knowing what else to do. Maybe it wanted the stimuli it received once you saw these thoughts. Maybe it was the mind's way of forcing you to confront these thoughts you feared so greatly. Glace had never bothered to understand it; she had never been fully interested in the strange workings of the mind.

But she did know she wanted to leave. She knew that if she left the watchtower right now, she could escape from these thoughts. She could find something else for her mind to focus on. Performing Patience's sentry duty did nothing to help her, possibly even making her situation worse with how she couldn't even complete any of her thoughts. And yet, she knew she couldn't leave. She knew Sonata spoke the truth; Patience would be back. He seemed far too diligent to abandon his post for too long. He latched his everything to this job even though she knew he hated it.

She needed to stay here and wait. She needed to keep doing Patience's job even though it didn't offer her mind much to think about. He would come back soon.

He had to.

* * *

Patience had long left Lilac City by the time his wings ached. He had flown past the great forest he was to tasked to watch every day, the mountains in the far horizon, and the valley that sat behind them. He had even sailed over all of the neighboring cities in the vicinity, including Daffodil Town, the one furthest from Lilac City.

Now Patience found himself gliding over a lake as clear and as brilliant as crystal. Birch trees sprouted all around it, surrounding it and casting their yellow leaves onto its surface whenever a strong gust blew. Their leaves drifted about the lake lackadaisically, only rushing through the water whenever they landed in the river that bled directly into the lake. Rocks protruded out of the water along the lake's edge, collecting so much moss and leaves around their mass that they took on a greenish hue with only specks of grey to be seen in the gleaming light of the afternoon sun.

But what Patience noticed most about the lake was how quiet it was. Even though he could see the red outlines of Magikarp swimming just beneath the water's surface and the Eevee with its Leafeon mother resting beneath a birch near the lake's edge, they didn't make any sounds. They didn't even notice him flying so high above.

The Tranquill settled himself in the highest branch he could find. Once he wrapped his talons around the white bark and folded his wings back into his body, he gazed out at the sun. He saw how its light glistened on the lake's surface, shimmering and sparkling like a diamond. He felt he could bask in the sight all day, the radiance never blinding him no matter its brilliance.

But he knew he had to get back to Lilac City before sunset. He couldn't avoid his sentry duty forever. It was already bad enough that he had abandoned his post. The guild wouldn't like to that. They probably wouldn't be too harsh because he was such an outstanding sentry, but they would still be upset and scold him. They would no longer see him as the epitome of a perfect sentry. They would always remember him as the Tranquill that abruptly flew away in the middle of his shift for seemingly no explainable reason.

No one would ever look at him the same way ever again. He would no longer be deemed as reliable.

He would become a disappointment.

The very thought of that made Patience's innards twist and turn in on themselves. And yet, while the very thought of letting down his guild did irk him, there was another thought that fervently worked to dominate his concerns. It was the very reason he had flown away in the first place.

He was a fragment of someone whole. That was the Weavile had called him; a splintered soul in the form of a Tranquill. And not only that, but if he didn't go with her, then the strange anomaly in the sky would destroy his dimension. She had dumped all of that on him at once, as if trying to shatter his entire perception of life and fling him into an existential crisis.

Everything she had stated sounded completely ludicrous and something only a lunatic would ramble on about. There was absolutely no reason to believe anything she had said. After all, how could they possibly be the same being when they had nothing in common? He was a Tranquill, a creature of the sky and she a Weavile, a creature of the land. What kind of entity split itself apart into two very different Pokémon? Not only that, but she had offered no proof to their supposed connection. She hadn't shown him her dimension and she most certainly hadn't explained who their original self was. She had known Patience's true name, a name no one knew him by anymore, but she really could have been someone from his fading childhood memories. It was most certainly more plausible than her being another version of himself.

And yet, her words had been brimming with a frightening amount of clarity. Her words had been like the first gust of wind that he had caught under his wings. He remembered how he had finally grasped the concept to use his wings and tail in unison to take off after a whole day of struggling. Once had done that, the wind had swept him off his feet and brought him into the air. It carried him above his beaming parents, above the hay roofing of his home, above the Noctowl's nest in the knot of a tree near his neighbor's home, and above the hills sitting behind the town. It brought him higher and higher, pulling him out of gravity's hold.

It was at that moment that he finally saw the spaciousness of the world for the very first time. All of the Pokémon that once towered over him became the size of Joltik. The buildings that took so long to venture through had become like the seeds he snacked on throughout the day. The ancient trees that that had survived countless fires and seemed to pierce the sky became nothing more than the mere twigs that Patience often saw feral flying-types make their nests with.

Everything, no matter how monumental it might seem from the ground, was completely insignificant in the end. Everything that stood on the planet was nothing more than a single stone in the great and beautiful mosaic that Patience knew to be the entire world.

That Weavile, just like the wind on that day so long ago, had forcibly thrown out all of his previous beliefs about life and crammed all of this disorienting new information down into his mind without a single care of what would happen to him afterwards.

If he was a fragment, then many murky aspects about himself he could never fully grasp suddenly became alarmingly clear. For instance, why had he never bothered to search out for his true parents? He had known for quite some time that his caregivers were not the ones that hatched him. Neither one of them had been an Unfezant and they had even told him quite early in his childhood that was adopted. He should have felt a longing to understand his origins, to know why he had been in that forest all alone, his parents nowhere to be seen. But he hadn't. He had never found it within himself to wonder who had created his egg. It never seemed important to him. If he was a fragment, then it all made sense. Of course he never would have cared to find his parents; he never had any in the first place. He lacked that innate desire all sentient creatures craved to understand where they had come from and why they existed in the first place.

Then there was the fact that he couldn't remember the last time he felt intensely emotional and passionate about anything. He of course enjoyed adventuring when he was younger. He could still remember how much his heart soared with him as he flew over the land and took in all the beauty of the world. But when he could no longer be that adventurer and doomed his life to that of a sentry, he never found it within himself to leave his position. He knew he could have. Every time he woke up, he knew that he could tell the guild that he wanted to stop being their sentry and move onto other ventures in life. They would have been distraught and surely miss him, but they would have let him go. They couldn't force him to continue something he no longer wanted to commit to.

And yet, he never did. He never found it within himself to quit. Though his days filled with banality and the years slipped by so swiftly, he never felt the overwhelming need to leave his position. He couldn't muster any sort of energy to quit and become the adventurer he had cherished being in his youth. If he truly was nothing more than a piece of a whole, then perhaps it all made sense. Maybe he was missing a crucial part of himself.

After all, when he stood on that watchtower every single day, why did he never think of anything more than what he saw directly before him? Why did his mind never wander to places far beyond, or even to the very skies that his kind belonged to?

Why did he no longer feel a rush when he spread his wings and soared through the blue yonder?

Why did everything he eat, whether it be the plain seeds he bought from the market or the exquisitely prepared Clauncher served at the finest of restaurants, seem to be nothing but mass to stop the growling of his stomach?

And why, when he looked out at this beautiful lake and saw how marvelously the sun shined down upon the water, could he not appreciate any of it? Why did it not feel any different than gazing out into that forest?

Patience ruffled his feathers and closed his eyes. He slowly breathed in and out, all while focusing on the blurry red that was the back of his eyelids. All of the questions brewing within his mind slowly settled down, softening from loud, rowdy thoughts to muffled whispers, and then finally to silence. He took a moment to appreciate the quiet that was now his mind.

And then, he asked himself the question he had been too afraid to answer for far too many years.

Was he happy?

* * *

Glace's day had been quite long. There had been about twenty Pokémon in the entire time she had taken on the sentry duty, all of which were fairly easy Pokémon to recognize. There had been a Tangrowth that wanted to visit his grown hatchlings after not seeing them for a few years. There had been an entire group of Jumpluff that were there for a great party of sorts for many wind-travelling enthusiasts such as Drifblim and other Jumpluff. Then there had been a Smeargle who claimed to be a traveling artist who came to sell a few paintings he had on hand.

The list went on, but they all had one thing in common; there was nothing to suspect about any of the Pokémon. Not a single one of them seemed shady according to Sonata and so they were granted access to Lilac City after a quick exchange of information. Glace didn't even think she had said more than thirty words to any of them.

Now it was nearly sunset, and Patience still hadn't returned to the watchtower.

Glace rubbed at her eyes with the back of her claws and resisted a yawn. Her muscles felt stiff from sitting at the edge of the tower for so long and yet her brain buzzed with antsy energy. She couldn't wait to get up and leave that tower after being stuck there for so long.

However, she didn't know if she could actually leave the tower. After all, she didn't know where else Patience would appear. She didn't know where he lived. She knew she could ask his guild where his home lay, but they might not tell her where he lived. After all, they would have known that she had seen him. Surely she could have asked him herself where he lived, so why would she bother asking them for the location of his home? The watchtower was the best place she could find him.

Still, did that mean she had to sleep at the tower if she ever wanted to find him? It didn't seem particularly comfortable to lie on hard metal the entire night.

 _Patience will come back, won't he? I don't want to wait here all night for him._

 _I hope he does. I mean, he hasn't come back yet and that doesn't look good but… I mean, what else can we do?_

 _Maybe we really should go ask his guild where he lives. Maybe we can make up an excuse that he wasn't feeling very talkative because he was working and we wanted to visit him when he's not so busy._

 _I think that might work, yeah. But let's just wait until it gets dark. You know, give him one last chance and everything._

 _Yeah, alright._

Glace knew that the sun would set in just a few moments, so she wouldn't have to wait too long for Patience to come back. She could tolerate that much time even after how utterly mind-numbing her entire day had been on that tower.

The Weavile gazed at the mountains so far beyond her reach and watched the way their shadows dipped into the forest as the sun set behind them. She could see the shadows slowly stretching toward her, as if they wanted to wrap her up in their grasp.

One second, she saw the calming darkness settling over the forest. And then the next second, the massive shadows turned into an entire sea of ghost-types. There had to be hundreds of them, all packed more tightly together than a school of Remoraid. It was almost impossible to distinguish each ghost from another with how all of their bodies held the same shade of insidious ebony.

Glace quickly stood up.

 _Sonata, what is that?_

Sonata didn't respond. Glace saw the ghosts encroaching toward her frail tower like a great tsunami, their otherworldly eyes shining with a brilliant light that could have held the very sun behind them.

 _Wait. Are those the ghosts I saw in that one memory of yours?_

The ghosts flooded into the tower. Glace backed away from the sight and raised her claws.

She could only watch as more and more creatures descended into the tower. They wasted no time in surrounding her completely, circling her like a pack of Houndoom around a hapless Eevee. She felt the temperature drop several degrees as they surrounded her. And though the cold normally couldn't affect her, she felt her entire body shudder. She felt her stomach twist itself into a knot and her heart beat so fast she was sure it would leap out of her chest.

 _Sonata!_

The ghosts wasted no time in bombarding her. They flooded into her sight, bleeding their taint into her vision so that she could no longer see anything but an abysmal black that offered no hint of salvation.

 _Sonata! Answer me!_

 _Oh! Gah, I didn't know you were seeing this!_

The darkness abruptly vanished.

No longer did Glace find herself surrounded by hundreds of demonic creatures that had surely intended to steal her soul. Now she only found herself on the lonely watchtower, the only darkness being the shadows deep within the forest. And even then, they were the harmless, innocent shadows that brought no harm to anyone. Most certainly not those unsettling ghost types.

Glace took in a few, raspy breaths before rubbing her eyes. When she opened them again, she still found that there were no ghost-types. Whatever they were, they were gone now.

 _Just what was that, Sonata?_

 _Don't worry, it's not real. It's not real… they're not coming back or anything. They don't live in this dimension…_

 _But what just happened? What was I seeing?_

 _A um… a memory of mine._

Glace sat back down before holding her head in her claws. She rubbed at her temples with her claws.

 _It didn't feel like a memory. I actually felt those ghosts around me._

 _Well it was a pretty bad and scary memory. It felt real to me too. And seeing that huge shadow and the sun setting behind those mountains… well it just reminded me a lot of what happened all those years ago._

 _Sonata, what exactly were those things? Tell me what I just saw._

 _They're… well, I actually don't know what they are. But in my dimension, those things come out the second the sun sets and they go around and they… they hurt people all night long. Not physically, usually, but like they'll mess up your mind. Like this one guy lost the wall between his conscious and subconscious so he constantly has all these crazy thoughts in his head. And then someone else lost the ability to feel any happiness at all. And then someone else has these constant nightmares about being killed by these Hydreigon over and over again in the worst ways possible. And the only way you can hide from them is to find shelter. They won't follow you inside a house or a burrow for some reason._

 _And they come out every night?_

 _Yeah. Every night for a long time._

 _That sounds terrifying. I can't imagine not being able to go out at night._

 _Well, it's how it is where I am. Nobody can really do anything about it. My guild was trying to find a way to get rid of them but we haven't had any luck so far. But maybe they figured something out after I left…_

 _And I imagine that you had an encounter with them at some point?_

Sonata wouldn't respond. Glace could practically feel her shifting uncomfortably within her mind. It felt very similar to something crawling under Glace's skin, something that Glace forced herself to ignore.

 _Is this why you didn't want to leave your dimension for a while?_

… _The ghosts weren't the only problem we had there, but they were a big part of it. I was a big help with getting rid of them. Maybe not as big as some other people I know in all those guilds… but still pretty big. Downf… I mean, my leader trusted me with a lot, and he was a very important guy._

 _You don't have to hide his name, you know._

 _I know. But I don't want to think about him if I can help him. Leaving him was one of the hardest things I had to do, and I've done some crazy, near impossible missions for him._

For just a moment, Glace felt a painful twisting in her chest. However, before she could clutch at it, the feeling faded, and she felt empty. She couldn't even feel the panic that had taken over her when the hallucination manifested itself. Every emotion that truly belonged to Sonata had completely vanished.

 _But anyway, I'm sorry about that. I was okay before with it being night here since the whole sky wasn't filled with those ghosts and there was plenty of light, but just actually seeing the sun setting and having it look so similar to what happened before… I guess you can say it was too much for me. If I was still in my dimension, the psychics would probably label me as having The Unforgotten._

Glace only sighed deeply in response. It had been quite a while since she had been that frightened. However, she didn't entirely regret the experience. She had learned more about Sonata thanks to it after all. Perhaps not too much, and it was more an elaboration on information she had already known about, but it was something.

Even still, she couldn't help but ponder over how very real that memory had felt. She could still remember those ghosts' dreadful chill seeping into her body and the brilliance of her eyes. It was more vivid than most of her dreams. Why was that? Was Sonata's assimilation allowing her access to more than just the Noivern's thoughts?

"You're still here."

Glace looked over at her side to find yet another surprise awaited her. It took her a moment to make sure that she wasn't having yet another hallucination.

There, perched on the very edge of the watchtower, stood a very familiar Tranquill. His expression seemed as bland as always.

"Patience," Glace said as she slowly stood up. "You're back."

"Yes, this tower is where I perform my sentry duties," he stated simply. "I couldn't leave it forever. Apparently you didn't leave after I did though."

"No, I didn't. But I got all of the Pokémon that came by while you were gone. I wrote them down on that piece of paper you use. So your supervisor won't be upset. I imagine he won't even realize you were gone."

"You didn't have to do that."

"I know I didn't. But I did it anyway."

"I see. Well thank you for taking over my shift while I was gone. I appreciate that."

Patience fluttered down to the paper Glace spoke of and gazed down at it. Glace could see him subtlety moving his head as he read through the lines, occasionally nodding to himself. He didn't seem the least bit bothered that Glace was there with him despite what had happened earlier that day. There was no stiffness in his posture and not a single feather on his body seemed puffed out. Even his wings remained comfortably tucked into his body.

"You did a good job," Patience stated as he continued to glance through the paper. "You even followed my format. "

"Thanks," Glace said.

Silence fell over them once again. Glace could feel her heart beating in her chest now. She knew what she needed to say to Patience. She needed him to understand that he needed him to come with her to the other dimension and stop the destruction that would soon to ensue. But she didn't know how she was supposed to do that. How was she supposed to convince him to abandon everything he ever cared about and go with her to retrieve their other selves? How was she supposed to change his mind when he clearly wasn't on board with the idea before?

What was she supposed to do? How was she supposed to correct her mistake and help him understand how much she needed him?

 _What options do I have? What can I say to him that-_

"I thought about what you said earlier with us being fragments of someone else," Patience said, still keeping his eyes on the paper below him.

"Oh… you did," Glace said after a short pause.

"Yes. I thought about everything while I was away. It was a lot to think about it, but I feel that I understand everything better now."

"And what do you think?"

Patience lifted his gaze and brought it over to Glace. She noticed that there was something different in his eyes. In the light of the fading sun, she no longer saw a dull, empty shell of a Pokémon. A vague sort of somberness glimmered in those eyes.

"Everything you said, even though it sounds almost impossible to believe, makes quite a bit of sense to me," he replied. "If I can be honest, I've always felt that there was something missing in my life. Some integral part of my being that I never had. I never felt miserable or anything like that, but there was something that I lacked that I should have had. And after everything you told me, I finally figured out what it was.

"I was missing the drive to do what I wanted. I always did whatever anyone told me to do, never once thinking about myself. I became patient because I never felt the need to assert myself and go do what makes me happy. I relied on everyone's expectations for me to live. I thought that by doing what everyone else wanted and by not disappointing them… I'd have a good life."

The Tranquill sighed deeply and shook his head.

"But the truth is, that never made me happy," Patience went on. "Doing what I'm told to do for everyone else's sake… doing things because that's just how I should be… I never should have expected to be happy with any of that. But I went with it because I couldn't find it inside myself to fight back. And if I really am a fragment like you say… well then maybe that would explain why I never could fight back. Maybe one of the other fragments took that part of me with them."

"So you do believe what I told you then," Glace replied.

"Yes, I think so. I still have trouble believing a few things, but maybe they'll make sense in time. But for now, I do think that you and I really were one being at one point. When I look at you, I do admit that I see something very familiar that reminds me of myself, even if I can't quite grasp what it is."

"It's alright. You don't have to understand everything completely. Even I don't. We can only keep moving forward and try to understand everything piece by piece."

The Tranquill nodded. However, he only shared a gaze with Glace for a moment longer before he abruptly broke off their stare and fixed his gaze onto a tree to her side. Glace could see him scratching at the metal ground with his talons.

"If I can be honest, I think the part that I don't understand the most and what made me doubt you… well, it's the fact that you're a girl and I'm a boy," Patience stated hesitantly. "It didn't sit well with me for a number of reasons…"

Glace couldn't help but laugh a little at the thought. She couldn't believe that she hadn't noticed the one major difference between her and Patience before. Of course he had a difficult time believing that they were one being when that was so. Their physical appearances vastly differed in more ways than one.

How did she honestly not pay attention to that? Why hadn't she found it to be a problem? Sonata had explicitly said Patience was a male long before they went after him, and yet she had accepted the information with no issue whatsoever. She had never considered that just maybe Patience would find that to be an uncomfortable thought.

"I guess you're right," Glace replied. "Well honestly, I don't know why we're different in that way. But then again, I don't know why all of us look so different in the first place. Weavile and Tranquill are nothing alike."

"I suppose that's true," Patience stated simply. "I don't know why I found the species contrast more acceptable than what I mentioned earlier. It was a silly difference to be doubted by, honestly."

"It's fine. I think your thoughts were valid. I wish I could tell you why we're so different, but I really don't know why myself. And I have a feeling that our other selves are going to be even more different than the both of us. It makes you wonder what our old self was thinking when it split us up."

"Maybe our original self thought it would be an amusing thing for us to react to when we found each other."

"I don't see how it would be amusing. If anything, it would make it even more difficult for each other to believe one another and merge back together. If we were all male or all female it would be easier to believe that we're all one being, even if we're all different species. But if some of us are male and some of us are female, I can imagine some of the other fragments might have a difficult time believing everything."

"Well, maybe our original self was just a massive jerk who did all of this to make assimilating each other even more difficult. Maybe the dimensions aren't even falling apart; maybe it split itself up in such a complicated and contrived way so that it can laugh at how we all react to each other."

This time Patience laughed. It was quiet and he mostly kept it under his breath, but Glace could hear a genuine laugh escape from his beak. Glace couldn't help but smile at the sight.

 _Well at least he's got a good attitude about this whole thing. Who knew he could be so light-hearted when he seemed so dead inside? I guess that goes to show that nobody is actually who they appear to be._

 _I don't think it's that, Sonata._

 _Oh? What do you think it is?_

 _I think that he always had the potential to be this way. I feel he could have always been a cheerful Tranquil . However, one of us fragments took that from him. When our old self split apart, we took that ability for him to be this way. So, I think that right now…_

… _He's finally becoming whole._

 _That's what I think, yeah. I don't know for certain, but that's the impression I get right now._

 _Well it would make sense. He did say that he felt like some part of him was missing. Maybe by being around us, he's getting that part of himself back._

Patience stopped laughing and brought his eyes back to Glace. She noticed that a bright, hopeful light now glimmered in his eyes.

"You told me that you wanted me to come with you to find the other fragments," Patience then stated. "Well, I've thought about it as well, and I think I'd be quite fine with that."

"Really?" Glace asked, barely able to resist shooting him a bemused glare. "I would appreciate that, but you do understand what that means if you come with me, don't you?"

"Yes, that I'll be leaving this dimension behind and that I'll never see it again. I understand that part completely. And I don't mind it either. I'm fine with leaving behind this life I never actually enjoyed and going with you to the other dimensions. I'll almost be like the adventurer I always wanted to be if I help you find the others."

"So you understand. Alright. In that case, if you do want to help me, then-"

"However, I did want you to answer a question before I do go with you. If you can answer them truthfully, then I'll help you find the others."

"Alright, I can do that. What do you want to ask me?"

"Who were we before we split apart?"

It took a moment for Glace to process what he had just asked. She should have anticipated the question, but for some reason, she hadn't. Or rather, she didn't think that he would actually ask her the question so bluntly.

"I don't know," she answered cautiously. "I saw whoever it was in a vision, but I couldn't tell who it was. It was shrouded in shadow. It talked to me, but it wouldn't show me what it looked like."

"I see," Patience replied quietly. "Is there anything you do know about it?"

"Not much I'm afraid. I only know that it had to be very strong if it was able to split itself up into all of us. I imagine it was a deity of sorts. I can't imagine a mortal Pokémon being able to make all of us."

"And you really don't know why it split itself up into all of us either?"

"No, I don't. I don't know why it made all of us when it needs to be whole in order to stop the dimensions from collapsing on each other. I imagine there was a good reason, but I don't know it at the moment. I'm hoping it will make more sense as I find the others."

Patience nodded, but said nothing more. Glace knew that nothing she had said sounded all that convincing, but she had truthfully spoken everything she thought. It wasn't as though she could lie to Patience either; once she assimilated him, he'd know everything inside her mind. He'd be able to see all of her memories and thoughts at will and there would be nothing she could do to stop him.

She could only hope that the ambiguity of their situation didn't scare him off, despite him promising to go with her regardless.

The Tranquill kept the silence between them for a moment longer, and then finally made his way toward Glace until he stood right before her. Glace had to resist backing away from him. She didn't like his sharp beak being so near to her.

"Thank you for your answers. I have nothing else to ask you," he told her.

"Did you have anything you wanted to do before we go?" Glace asked.

"No, I'm fine. Admittedly I could tell my guild that I'm leaving and won't be returning... but I can't seem to muster up the courage to tell them that. I still don't want to appear as a disappoint to them. So I can only hope they'll come to understand my decision once they realize I'm missing."

"They will, just like the ones who knew me in my own dimension. And if not, they will learn to move on and accept your decision. You won't be a disappointment to them. No one ever stays in one place for the rest of their lives. Everyone has to leave one day."

Patience nodded, but not without some hesitance. He paused for a moment, gazing at something over Glace's shoulder, and then took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"I'm ready to go with you now to the other dimensions and become our old self," he said. "I hope that in finding our other selves, we'll figure out who our old self was and why it made all of us. I really don't want to go into this blindly without understanding our old self."

An iridescent light suddenly washed over the Tranquill's body. Glace watched as it completely consumed his entire being, taking his avian shape and reducing it to a blob of ethereal energy that shifted its shape and form with every second so that it had no discernable shape.

It wasted no time in merging with her, seeping into her body and becoming one with her soul.

However, unlike when she had assimilated Sonata into her being, Glace didn't feel a terrible pain shoot through her skull. Though Patience's essence sent a shudder down her spine for just a moment, it didn't hurt her in the slightest. There was no darkness to fill her vision, no tears to be shed, and no strange visions to fill her mind.

If anything, the experience felt oddly comforting, as if she had eaten a dozen oran berries after being famished for many days and nights.

The feeling did disappear after every bit of Patience disappeared from the watchtower and went into her soul, but much to her surprise, she wasn't left completely empty. She felt Patience's presence within her, a great mass of relentless energy becoming one with her mind and soul. And as he became her, giving her his everything that he ever was and ever could be, she felt a great power rise out of the depths of her heart. A power that made her feel as though she could sprout wings right there and take off into the sky.

Glace grinned from ear to ear as she reveled in this wonderful feeling, this newfound strength that she had never known existed within herself. She could feel all of her muscles jittering with her other self's energy as they became one.

 _So this is what I was missing out on this entire time. This is was what I used to be… no, just a fraction of it! If I would have had this power before, I could have been the amazing leader I was supposed to be. I could have been everything that I ever wanted to be…_

 _Now hold on Glace, don't go all power crazy right now. The last thing I want you to do is let this all go to your head. So let's just calm down and remember why we're finding all the fragments in the first place._

… _We need to find everyone to become whole and stop the multiverse from destroying itself…_

 _Right. Exactly._

… _Right._

Glace took in a deep breath, calming her nerves and soothing the rampant energy coursing through her. Though she still could feel her newfound power rushing through her veins, she forced herself to ignore it. She couldn't let it overwhelm her. She had a job to do, a duty that she promised Patience and Sonata she would fulfill.

She stared down at her claws as she slowly curled them into her palms.

 _Patience, are you there?_

 _I think so. I'm not entirely sure what to make of being inside your mind and no longer having a body, but I can hear you at least. And please, call me Yore._

 _If you say so, Yore. How do you feel?_

 _I'm not entirely sure how I feel. I don't feel anything in this strange place that's your soul. I can't move, I can't breathe, and I can only see your claws… but it doesn't feel unpleasant at the same time._

 _Oh don't worry about that, you'll get used to it! Just give it a few hours or so and this place will feel like a second home to you._

An uncomfortable shiver ran through Glace's core. Glace held herself as she waited for the feeling to pass. It took far longer than she had anticipated.

… _You're another fragment living inside Glace._

 _Yeah! I'm Sonata. I met Glace before she met you. I'm the reason she knows all about the fragments in the first place. I told her all about our old self and how to find you and everything. You can say that I'm her guide._

 _So you are… is there anyone else here?_

 _Nah, we're the only ones here. You were the very first fragment Glace went to go find. But if things go well with the rest of the fragments, then we won't be the only ones for long. Speaking of which, Glace, I think it's time we go find our next fragment._

 _Right now?_

 _Yeah! I mean, we're on a roll here! We got Yore with almost no problems. We shouldn't take a break when we're doing so well._

 _I'd say that there were a few problems…_

 _Well he still agreed to come with us without trying to hurt us and without being gone for too long, so I'd say we did a great job._

 _You two thought I was going to hurt you? Glace, is that why you were raising your claws like that when I was glaring at you?_

 _Yes, Yore. It wasn't anything personal however. I only have had a number of unpleasant encounters with flying types and whenever any of you seem even remotely ready to attack me, I get on edge._

 _I wouldn't have hurt you though. I honestly haven't fought anyone in a single day in my life._

 _I didn't know that when I first met you._

 _Well_ _ **anyway**_ _you guys. I think we should get out of this dimension. We don't really have anything left to do here. We should go to our next fragment. I already have a good Pokémon in mind. I get this weird feeling that she'll be tough to talk to… but I think we'll be okay._

 _You want to find another girl fragment. Are you certain that I'm not the only boy fragment?_

 _Oh don't worry, I'm sure! There's like… five other guys. But don't worry; we'll go after some of them soon. I just think that this fragment I have in mind is our best bet right now. It's this gut instinct, you know?_

 _I'm afraid I don't, but you seem knowledgeable about this, so I won't bother trying to argue. It is relieving that there are other male fragments however._

 _Yeah, no need to worry Yore. No need to worry about anything at all. All you need to worry about is if Glace is going to go dimension hop or not right now._

Glace chuckled a little. She could practically feel Sonata's tension building within her, growing stronger and stronger with each passing moment. It made her head spin and she found she could no longer hear any of her selves' words. Glace was sure that if she didn't decide soon, all of that pressure might explode within her and send Sonata and Yore flying right out of her soul.

What an amusing thought.

 _Alright, let's get going. Tell me where to go, Sonata._


	5. I'm Here For You

An elderly Octillery silently slinked through the cold, dark depths of the ocean.

She drew in as much ocean water as she could into her mantle, and then quickly expelled it out. The sudden burst then propelled her through the water a few feet, where she would then come to stop and she would need to repeat the process again to keep moving forward. It seemed like a tiring process, having to constantly withdraw water before dispelling it to flow through the ocean, but not to the Octillery. Her three hearts sustained her plenty, making sure she didn't feel the least bit faint as she swam through the sea.

With every propulsion a tingling sensation washed over her entire body. She could feel how much her suckers wanted to twist and tighten around the nearest Clamperl. Now would be a good time to catch one after all. They all slumbered down below on the ocean floor, hiding away in between the coral.

But she couldn't. She was on a much different type of hunt now and had to stay focused and vigilant.

She adjusted her angle so that she faced toward the light illuminating above her, and then shot herself toward it. Seconds later, her head emerged from the murky water and entered the surface world.

Moonlight poured down from high above, casting a soft blue light onto the water surrounding her. She could see it dimly reflecting off her pale red skin, a consequence of having not seen the sun for many years. She had long forgotten the warm rays of the great ball of fire that ruled the day. She only knew the cool, otherworldly light of the night and its dim, glimmering companions that pierced through the eternal sky of black. And though the moon was no substitute for the guiding beacon known as the sun, the blue light still allowed her everything she needed. Particularly, it allowed her to see her destination with perfect clarity.

There, within close swimming distance, lay Wayward Island.

It was the only island around for miles and miles around. Most of the islands in the world lived in clusters of perhaps five or six small islands only able to house a few dozen Pokémon each. Due to this, the island dwellers usually connected each of their islands with wooden docks to establish a trade system depending on which island had what goods. But not Wayward Island. This island stood all alone in the vast ocean, as if to defy cooperation and unity. If it had been as small as the other islands the Octillery had visited, then surely none of its civilians would have lasted long.

However, that wasn't an issue. Wayward Island was perhaps one of the largest islands on the planet, housing at least a few hundred Pokémon. Enough fruit and wild life flourished in the thick foliage of the deeper parts of island to sustain everyone who lived there.

The Octillery dipped back into the ocean and hurried toward the island. She spurted through the water with increased vigor until her tentacles brushed against soft, powdery sand. Once so, she ceased her bursts and lowered herself to the seafloor. Then, she crawled her way to the surface using her nimble tentacles. It was only a matter of time before she emerged from the shoreline and settled onto the dry, grainy land.

She could see the palm trees that filled the beach now. She could see how a few grew separated from the others, bending toward the ocean at a slightly slanted angle, while others remained in clusters farther inland. The great gathering of these palm trees reminded the Octillery of a wall due to how closely they grew together and how all of the leaves seemed to intertwine with one another.

The Octillery ignored the gritty feeling of sand in her suckers as she crawled toward the mass of trees. Despite lacking any semblance of bones in her body, she was able to scurry across the land at an adequate pace. Surely not as quickly as a majority of the Pokémon that lived on this island, but much faster than any other aquatic Pokémon.

Within moments, she exited the forest and found herself peering into a small town. All of the buildings within her sight were short, one-story huts with thatched roofs. All of them stood a couple of feet off the sand with a ramp that connected each hut's door with the ground. A few burning torches several times her height protruded out of the sand throughout the area, casting an orange glow against the walls of some of the huts.

However, there didn't seem to be a single soul in sight. All of the huts' doors were covered with bundles of fresh palm tree leaves. No shadows scurried in and out of the fires' light. All was quiet and peaceful on this part of the island. The only sounds to be heard were the crackling of the torches' flames and the distant ocean waves crashing onto the shoreline.

This was most definitely a residential area. All of the huts were too similar to one another to be an area for consumption and bartering. It seemed a bit smaller than some of the other neighborhoods she had visited in the past on this island, but it didn't matter. This particular part of the island housed a number of families and all of them surely slumbered the night away.

She had found exactly what she wanted.

The Octillery left behind her foliage shelter and pulled herself into the town with her tentacles. She made sure to keep herself within the shadows as she moved along. Though she couldn't hear or see anyone, it was no guarantee that she was alone. Someone might be patrolling about in an area nearby, or someone might awaken from their slumber and wander out of their home. She couldn't afford to be seen. If someone saw her, then she would be forced to retreat and would not be able to come back to this town for many days.

She kept in the shadows until she found herself within tentacle's reach of an especially worn hut with coconuts piled up near the door. She checked both ways for any signs of wandering Pokémon, and then hurried over to the makeshift window on the side of the hut. She grabbed at its edges with three tentacles, holding on tight with her suckers, and then pulled herself into the hut.

It was much smaller inside the hut than the Octillery expected. The entire hut was mostly one room, with the beds pushed against the back wall and tables lined with plants and Remoraid towards the door. A cabinet stood against the wall just opposite of her, filled with many pots, pans, and baskets. Everything felt so cramped together. The Octillery could barely lower herself to the floor without her tentacles brushing up against any of the furniture. She had to curl her tentacles around her body, something that felt mildly awkward.

She couldn't remember the last time she had visited a home this small. Though many huts had just one room, they had more space than this. She could only imagine how difficult it was for the residents to navigate through the cramped space.

With that thought in mind, the Octillery brought her gaze to where the beds lay. They weren't so much beds as they were brown mats made out of straw. They didn't look very comfortable, but one wouldn't know that after noticing the Pokémon resting on top of them. Befitting of the small hut, a group of three Pokémon slept soundly before the Octillery. Specifically, two adult Golduck and one hatchling Psyduck. They slept on their own separate mats, but stayed in close proximity to one another. This was especially true for the Psyduck, who at the moment cuddled close to who the Octillery presumed was the mother of the group. She noticed how pleasantly and calmly the Psyduck slumbered, as if in the midst of a happy dream.

The Octillery watched the Psyduck for a moment longer before she crawled back out the window. She didn't need that Psyduck. He was perfectly fine where he was. She still felt the hut was a tad bit too small for the family's needs and fretted over the implications of it, but that Psyduck didn't need to be saved. His life situation might not have been ideal, but he seemed content. He would grow up just fine.

She settled herself onto the sand before retreating back into the shadows. She crept around the neighborhood, avoiding the torchlight like her life depended on it, until she found herself before a much larger hut. This one stood much higher than all the other huts and had more width and length than the Golduck home. The Octillery crawled around the hut until she found a window just large enough for her to squeeze through. She peered into the window, making sure that only darkness stared back at her, and then crawled inside.

As she had suspected, this hut was much nicer than the previous one. The ceiling towered high above her head, at least twenty times her own height, and had a number of rafters holding items of all sorts. There were many furs from various land Pokémon, meats hung up to dry, and articles of clothing to be fetched with ease. Multiple basins and baskets sat upon the flooring, holding fresh water and plants gathered from the deeper parts of the island. But perhaps most noticeable of all, this household didn't sleep on dirty mats. Here, they slept in hammocks tied to nails embedded deep within the hut's mainframe. There were five of them in all, hanging a few feet above the Octillery, each holding a Pokémon within its soft confines. She could hear them all breathing softly from where she stood. However, she couldn't actually see any of the Pokémon. The hammocks were more like cocoons than actual hammocks with the way they almost completely enveloped the Pokémon with their thick fabric. However, she knew there was a way to fix that. She knew she could still see who slept in this hut if she tried hard enough.

The Octillery crept over to the hammocks, careful to move slowly so that her suckers wouldn't make a sound. When she made it to the wall closest to the hammocks, she carefully climbed her way up. It took a bit of effort and she had to carefully weave her tentacles through the hut's framework, but she ascended toward the slumbering Pokémon all the same. Within moments, she had climbed so high up that her head brushed against the very ceiling. Satisfied with this vantage point, the Octillery then set her sights down below.

As she had suspected, the tops of the hammocks remained exposed to the air. She could clearly see each of them slumbering below her. And as it turned out, all of the Pokémon were Grovyle. They all seemed to be young adults, perhaps having recently left behind their childhood homes. Why there were five of them living together, she didn't know. Perhaps they were all friends or siblings who found living together was easier than being separate. Or maybe there was another reason. The Octillery knew there was no way to find out. What she did know, however, was that she didn't need to stay any longer.

The Octillery crawled back down the walls and then plopped back onto the flooring. The moment her tentacles thumped against the ground, one of the hammocks shifted and creaked.

The Octillery threw herself at the wall as a jolt coursed through all three of her hearts. She plastered as many of her tentacles against the wood, taking in its rough, scratchy texture and color. She waited a second, and then changed the tone of her skin to match the wall completely. She even made her body copy the appearance of the texture so that it seemed she had splinters protruding out of her body.

Now seemingly a part of the wall, the Octillery gazed up at the source of the noisy hammock. A green, scaly arm reached out from the edge of the hammock, as if to grasp at something. But just as the Octillery worried that the Grovyle would climb out of the hammock, the arm fell limp. No more movement stirred from the hammock, or any of the other hammocks. Only quiet breathing resonated throughout the hut.

The Octillery waited in the darkness for another minute, eying the hammocks the entire time, and then silently retreated back outside.

She had about five more huts she could venture into in the area. Based on what she could tell, the sun wouldn't rise for another few hours anyway. She could easily search each of the houses and go to the next residential area long before the first ray of dawn lit the sky. Maybe she could investigate three neighborhoods if she was quick enough.

And maybe, just maybe, she wouldn't find someone in need saving.

The Octillery continued her diligent search through the huts. She made sure to keep as quiet as possible as she slinked into each and every home, careful not to knock over anything that might get in her way. A confrontation would be quite unneeded.

She checked every single hut in the vicinity and found that not a single one held a child in need of saving. Some were like that Psyduck in that they could have been living in better conditions, but nothing in their lives could be considered harmful. Everyone in the neighborhood would live healthy lives and become well-adjusted adults.

When the Octillery realized this, she left the homes behind and made her way toward the next neighborhood. She hoped that it wouldn't be very far.

As it turned out, it wasn't. All she had to do was cross through a thick gathering of foliage for a few minutes, and then she found herself in a new neighborhood. It seemed almost identical to the previous residential area with all of the homes being thatched huts. However, she did notice that there did appear to be a few more huts here and they seemed somewhat bigger as well. Not only that, many of the homes had coconut, banana, and palm trees growing right beside them, offering small amounts of shade. She imagined this was the slightly more luxurious neighborhood. Certainly not the richest part of the island, she imagined the huts would be far more extravagant than what she saw now, but an improvement over the other neighborhood.

Of course, looks could be deceiving.

The Octillery checked both ways, and then crawled toward the homes. She didn't bother trying to hide in the shadows this time. With so many trees in the area, she knew she could easily blend into their bark the second someone spotted her. So long as she kept close to a tree as she searched about, she would be just fine.

The Octillery had barely emerged from the foliage when she heard something scurrying across the sand. She shirked back into the trees and changed her skin into a deep green before peering at the source of the sound.

Much to her surprise, she saw a young Scraggy sprinting across the sand not far from where she hid. He was a skinny thing with his ribs being quite pronounced and the majority of his body lacking any semblance of muscle tone. He could barely hold up the loose skin around his feet as he made his way to the nearest banana tree in the area. He nearly tripped several times in the process. The mere sight of that made the Octillery's tentacles curl in on themselves in tight, uncomfortable knots.

Within a few moments, the Scraggy neared the tree. However, rather than stopping, he only increased his speed with a desperate, almost crazed glimmer in his eyes. Seconds later, he rammed his skull directly into the tree's trunk.

The entire tree shook violently. A few of its leaves tumbled to the ground around the Scraggy, but not the bright yellow bunch of bananas the Scraggy so fervently eyed. Not even a single banana moved an inch from the bunch.

The Scraggy muttered something under his breath as he took a few steps back before he struck the tree once again. As before, the tree trembled and even more leaves plummeted to the sand, but the bananas would not budge.

The Octillery watched as the Scraggy let out an almost feral cry before repeatedly attacking the tree, kicking, punching, and bashing his head into it with all his might. She could see the blood leaking out of his knuckles as he repeated the tree, making no progress whatsoever.

All three of her hearts broke at the sight.

"Stop, please stop," she spoke as she emerged from her hiding spot and neared the Scraggy. "Stop hurting yourself."

The little Pokémon swiveled his head toward the Octillery before flinching back. He let out a low whimper as he pulled his loose skin over his head, hiding himself from the Octillery's view. His knees shook so much that she worried that they would collapse on him.

"Little boy, it's alright," she said to him in a calm, soft voice as she stopped a few feet away from him. "I'm not going to hurt you."

The Scraggy wouldn't respond. He only continued to shield himself from her, too frightened to move an inch. The Octillery looked up at the bananas still hanging from the tree for just a second before bringing her gaze back to the boy.

"Here, let me help you," she told him. "Give me one moment."

The Octillery crawled over to the base of the tree before wrapping her tentacles around the trunk. Once her suckers latched on tight to the dry, smooth wood, she pulled herself up. She carefully climbed up the tree, tying her tentacles around the thick leaves and using them to hoist herself up until she was right beside the lowest banana bunch. She took one of her tentacles and wrapped it around the branch that connected them to the tree. Once she securely latched onto it with the one tendril, she released her hold on the main tree and plummeted toward the sand.

There was a snap, and the banana bunch separated itself from the tree and followed after the Octillery. She swiftly released her hold on the bananas, and then gracefully landed on all eight of her tentacles. The banana bunch collapsed in the sand right beside her, missing a couple of her arms by a few inches.

The Octillery gingerly wrapped one of her tentacles around a single banana and pried it free from the bunch with an effortless pull. She then presented it to the Scraggy before her, who still had his loose skin over his face. He probably hadn't even noticed what she had done.

"Here, take this," she said.

The Scraggy lowered his skin just a tiny bit, allowing the Octillery to see the tops of his eyes. They were both bloodshot and his pupils were dilated to the extremes.

The Scraggy eyed the banana, remaining as still as a statue. Then, in a flash, he snatched the banana out of the Octillery's tentacle and wolfed it right down. He didn't even bother to peel it; he only shoved as much as he could into his mouth, swallowed it down after a couple of bites, and then proceeded to repeat the process. Within seconds, the entire banana was gone. The Octillery wasted no time in ripping another banana off the bunch and giving it to the Scraggy. He ate this one just as ravenously.

For the next few moments, all the Octillery did was give the Scraggy fruit and let him scarf it down. She would keep giving him a banana every single time he finished his current one, saying nothing as he ate. By the time he finally stopped eating, nearly the entire bunch had been devoured.

The now full Scraggy released a relieved sigh before slumping to the ground. His entire face was caked with white mush, but he didn't bother wiping it off of him. He only laid there in the sand, gazing up at the stars with a lulled, lethargic stare.

The Octillery cautiously neared him. He didn't shirk away and only continued to watch the sky above. Before long, she found herself by the little child's side. Now that she had a much better view of the Scraggy, she could see how small he was. He was quite a few inches shorter than Scraggy ought to be at his age. His scrawny form didn't help much.

"Are you feeling better?" the Octillery asked.

The Scraggy nodded slowly. She could see him practically nodding off to sleep.

Now she needed to know if this Scraggy was in need of saving. It could be tricky obtaining the answers she sought from him. He was still a child after all. However, she had gained enough trust from this child for it to be decidedly less problematic than it could potentially be. He wouldn't let her this near if he didn't feel some semblance of safety in her company.

"Why were you trying to get bananas from this tree?" the Octillery asked.

"I was hungry," the Scraggy said in a scratchy, quiet voice without looking at her. "I don't have any food."

"There's no food in your home?"

"No… but my tummy hurt. I couldn't sleep. My tummy kept talking when I closed my eyes. So I tried to get some of the bananananas. They taste yummy and make my tummy stop talking."

"If you were so hungry, why didn't you ask your parents for something to eat?"

"Mommy and daddy aren't home."

"Where are mommy and daddy?"

"I don't know. Mommy and daddy like to go away sometimes."

The Octillery glared at the Scraggy's home in the near distance. She noticed that the entrance wasn't covered up by anything unlike the other huts, exposing it to the cool night wind. She couldn't see any semblance of slumbering Pokémon within the hut. Only an unkempt hut flooding with useless junk stared back at her in the light of the pale moon. It was hardly sanitary.

"How long have mommy and daddy been gone?" she asked, hiding her growing bitterness the best she could.

"Three days," the Scraggy said as he held up his paws and counted each of his claws.

"Three days? And what have you been doing this entire time?"

"Staying inside like they tell me to. I watch the wall and I wait for them to come home. I try to not listen to my tummy when it talks to me. But sometimes it hurts too much when it talks and I go outside so it can stop talking."

"And how often are you left at home by yourself like this?"

"A lot. Mommy and daddy like to go places a lot. They won't take me with them even though I keep asking them to. They tell me to stay home. I try not to cry when they leave, but sometimes I do. I don't like being all alone. There's nobody to talk to."

The Octillery could see now that this Scraggy clearly did need help. He could speak his thoughts clearly enough, but he would cease to develop further if he stayed in that house. He already showed signs with his lack of eye contact and flat affect.

The fact that he now lay slumbering before the Octillery further worried her. Eating all of those bananas and attacking the tree for as long as he had shouldn't have tired him out that quickly.

The Octillery briefly checked around her. Not a single Pokémon roamed about. All that surrounded her was the darkness of the night with the sounds of the distant ocean tide to accompany it.

She did one last visual scan of the vicinity, and then swiftly picked up the snoozing Scraggy in two of her tentacles. This didn't rouse him in the slightest. He moved slightly, stretching his skeletal arms, but he didn't struggle or open his eyes.

"Don't worry, you won't need to suffer any longer," she told him. "You're safe now."

She secured her grip around the Scraggy, making sure she didn't hold him too tightly, and then crawled back into the foliage. She weaved her way through it with the utmost care, doing her best not to let any of the leaves or branches brush up against the little boy. It took quite a bit of time, far longer than she was comfortable with, but she couldn't rush with the Scraggy in tow. She had to treat all of her children with all the gentleness her species could offer. This would have been much easier if she had been hatched a creature with hands, but she knew there was nothing she could do about that.

She should have been thankfully that she had prehensile limbs of any sort after being a finned creature of the water for a couple of decades.

After some time of diligently and carefully weaving her way through the island's vegetation, the Octillery finally found herself back at the beach. The cold waves rolled onto the soft sand before receding back into the ocean, as if beckoning the Octillery to follow them.

She looked down at the Scraggy in her tentacles to find that he still slept. She hoped it would stay that way. It was always much easier to carry passengers through the water when they weren't actively fighting with her. She sometimes had to put them to sleep to help lessen the burden, but it was never easy. It always stung her heart no matter how many times she had to do it. Fighting with younglings was perhaps her least favorite activity in the entire world.

With the Scraggy asleep, she wouldn't need to worry about any of that. All she had to think about now was how exactly she would carry him through the water. If he was a water-type, then there would be absolutely no concerns. The second any water-type submerges regardless of if they are conscious or not, they automatically use their gills and their lungs adapt accordingly.

Of course, this was impossible if the Pokémon wasn't a water Pokémon to begin with. If she tried to swim through the ocean with him now, he would most certainly drown in a matter of minutes.

But she didn't fret because as it turned out, there actually was a way to dive into the ocean without the child suffocating.

The Octillery crawled to the shoreline until the waves brushed up against her tentacles. She took in the salty smell of the ocean for just a moment as it passed under the rest of her body, letting it wash out the sand sticking to her suckers and moisten her tentacles.

Then, just as the water slowly receded back into the ocean, she absorbed a small amount into her body through her suckers. She sucked it all in and felt it pumping through her body. She focused as it flowed through her, energizing it with a special power that rested within her soul. She could feel a tingling feeling sweep through her body as the water made its way toward her long mouth.

She lowered her head so that her mouth hovered right above the sleeping Scraggy. She let all of the water gather at the back of her mouth, holding it back as all of the water slowly centralized in that particular area.

Then, once every bit of water was exactly where she wanted it to be, she released it all from her mouth and dumped it onto the Scraggy.

The water washed over the little child, but it didn't drip down into the waves. Instead, it seeped directly into the Scraggy's body. The Octillery watched as light blue spots appeared on his skin and slowly encroached the rest of his body. As this happened, three vertical cuts carved themselves into each side of his face. They ran parallel to each other as they etched themselves deep into his flesh and carefully intertwined with his respiratory system. The Scraggy shifted in his sleep as his body underwent the metamorphosis, but the Octillery only had to softly caress the top of his head to soothe him.

Within a matter of moments, the transformation finished. No longer did a scrawny little child of the land rest in her tentacles; he was a creature of the ocean now. Besides being a bright aqua color now, he now had the very gills every water-type possessed. They fluttered on his cheeks as they waited for water to rush through them, as if they had always been a part of his anatomy since his hatching day. Of course, despite how real they seemed at the moment, the Octillery knew they weren't permanent. They would disappear in a few hours, and when that happened, he would become a land Pokémon once again.

This was all the incentive the Octillery needed to hurry back home.

She tightened her grip on the sleeping child and then hurried into the water. She let the receding waves take her deeper into the ocean until most of her body fell beneath the surface. Then, she swam far into the ocean with the Scraggy in tow.

The child continued to sleep soundly as he sunk into the cold waters. His gills activated upon touching the water, instantly filtering out all of the oxygen from the water he needed and sending it into his body. He didn't even cough as water flooded into his mouth and gushed down his throat. He only slept peacefully, as if he truly were a water-type.

The Octillery would have smiled if she still could as she swam further out into the ocean. It wasn't long before the massive island became nothing more than an insignificant speck amongst the night. Then, it melted into the pale moonlight and became nothing. All that surrounded the Octillery and the child was the seemingly endless black sea, stretching for miles and miles.

She didn't fret, however. The hardest part of her hunt was over with. This night's hunt could actually be considered one of her most simple, straight-forward hunts in a long while. She hadn't run into any adults wandering about the neighborhoods at all that night. Normally, there were a few adults out and about, usually because they were unable to sleep and felt a nightly stroll might soothe them. Then also, some Pokémon enjoyed sleeping on the beach, particularly the adolescents and young adults. Something about being so close to the water, lying in the cool sand, and basking in the moonlight captivated them. Of course, it was never difficult to sneak past these Pokémon, but the Octillery never did like to entertain the thought that one of them might open their eyes when she crawled out of the ocean. She imagined in their drowsy state they would see her as a sea monster ready to devour them on the spot or perhaps drag them into the dark depths of the ocean. She could only imagine the panicked reactions that would ensue.

However, that was nothing compared to actually taking the helpless children out of their doomed homes. Most of the time, the parents were home. They weren't usually anywhere near the children, but they would still be close enough that the Octillery could hear them breathing. Or even worse, the parents would be awake by the time she arrived and wouldn't sleep until nearly dawn. Retrieving the children out of their homes when the adults remained so close was always the most dangerous part of the hunt. If the child made one sound or if the adults saw even a glimpse of her in the moonlight, utter chaos would ensue.

She remembered the worst incident of this happening was with an Azurill she found five years ago. His parents held a toxic relationship with one another. The mother was a dominating figure who constantly belittled the father for his failures in life, such as being unable to hold a job and for being unable to stand up for himself. The father was just as vitriolic in return, accusing the mother of being a complete dictator who felt she had to rule over everyone else in order to feel better about herself. It was a terrible sort of relationship, one that poisoned both partners, but the Octillery knew that they would never go their separate ways. Because underneath that contempt they held for each other, they needed each other on a deep and disturbing level. They needed the other to boost their self-esteem, to constantly remind themselves that they weren't as flawed as the Pokémon before them.

So naturally, it was only right to take their child away before their detrimental relationship tainted him. So when the two finally went off to sleep after yelling at each other for many hours, the Octillery made her move. She approached the Azurill's bed and then wrapped her tentacles around his body. After making sure that he didn't stir from her cold touch, she then hoisted him out of the bed and slinked toward the nearest window.

She was just about to slip back out into the night when the father spotted her. She really shouldn't have been surprised, given that Azumarill had excellent hearing, but it did. Especially when she saw the father turn from bemused to practically exploding with rage.

That had been the fastest she had ever hurried back to the water. She could still hear the vicious curses the father threw at her, all the while waking up every single Pokémon in the neighborhood. She was sure they all saw her in the light of the torches before she threw herself into the black sea.

She had never gone back to that particular island after that incident. Even after all those years, she wasn't sure that any of the residents forgot about her. Seeing an Octillery forcefully taking a child out of someone's home and never seeing that child again surely must have left an impact. But maybe she could go back sometime soon. There might be more children on that island in need of saving. She couldn't stay away forever just because one hunt had gone horribly wrong. Maybe during her next hunt she would go back to that island after so long.

But for now, she would be content with the success of her current hunt. She had her child safely curled up in her tentacles and the ocean felt particularly pleasant, as if personally congratulating her. There was no need to fret about anything now. She only needed to keep swimming close to the surface until she reached her home. She only hoped that the others would accept the little Scraggy.

Of course, she needed to come up with an explanation as to how she found this Scraggy. Not only that, but she needed to talk to the child and help him understand why she would now be living with him. He needed to see why he could no longer stay in that empty home and why he could never speak of what had happened that night. At least, not completely and honestly.

She would need to find a good time to speak to him about that. Hopefully she could do so before the others found her and questioned the boy. She couldn't expect them to only trust her words. It didn't matter that they had known her for many decades; they would still wonder why the Scraggy had to live with them. They would want to know why he needed to be cared for and what happened to his parents.

That's how adults were. They wanted to know _why._ They wanted to know _why_ anything happened. They couldn't accept anything at face value. No, they had to ask _why_ this was happening and _why_ that was happening and _why_ someone would let it happen. They had to bombard everything with their questions and dissect what lay before them until it was nothing but a hollow shell of its former self.

The Octillery saw something dark move through the water before she continue seething at the thought of adults and their constant questions. She slowed her momentum as she eyed the waters. She found she couldn't see anything in the white moonlight. Only emptiness filled the black sea.

She curled two more tentacles around the still slumbering Scraggy as the sound of her three hearts pounded in her head. She could feel practically feel each of her tentacles shivering. Several times she thought she felt something brush against her suckers, prompting her to recoil a few inches back. It always felt bristly and cold.

White hot pain struck the Octillery in one of her tentacles. Specifically, in one of the tentacles holding her Scraggy. She thrashed violently as she withdrew her tentacle, but found that she couldn't. Something held her tentacle with an astonishing strength, something that continued to bury deeper and deeper into her flesh. With some reluctance, the Octillery peered at her assailant.

It was a large, bulky Sharpedo almost twice her size. A number of nasty scars ran up and down its body, one in particular over its entire left eye. The Sharpedo tore deep into her tentacle with its massive jaws and clouding up the water with blue blood. Its one good eye glowed with a sinister red through the wraith-like blood, like an eerie moon in a hazy night. She saw no semblance of intelligence in the creature; only the blank ferocity of a hungry feral.

It sank its fangs further into her tentacle before yanking her with a violent tug. The Octillery flew through the water just as the predator released its hold on her and chomped down on her head seconds later. She proved just fast enough to move out of the way, causing its fangs to snap down inches away from her. Then, she shot thick, black ink out of her mouth and into the Sharpedo's eyes. It quickly filled the water with its dark, impenetrable darkness.

She wasted no time in righting herself in the water before jetting out of the growing cloud of murk. She could still feel the fiery stinging sensation in her one tentacle, but she ignored it the best she could. She didn't even look at it; she could assess the damage when she was safe. After all, her ink would only distract the Sharpedo for so long. That Sharpedo would eventually escape from the black cloud. It would smell her blood in the water and track her down with startling speed and accuracy. She could be miles and miles away and it would reach her within minutes to finish its job.

Her only hope of escape was to get home. If she could get home, she would be safe. She knew she could always dive to the ocean floor and hide in the coral, but that was too risky. She didn't know if there actually was any coral to take shelter in. Not only that, but she still had the Scraggy. He couldn't fit in between the cracks of the reef as easily as she could.

She glanced at the little child to find that he still slept. Somehow, despite all the tossing and turning, he remained fast asleep. She didn't know whether to feel thankful or deeply troubled.

Something shifted in the black ink, peeling the Octillery's eyes away from the child and back to the danger at hand. Seconds later, the Sharpedo shot out of the cloud and torpedoed straight toward her. Even with the half mile distance she had put between the two, she knew it would do little good. It would catch up in seconds. She had no time to hurry to the bottom of the ocean now. She could already see the white of its fangs and the insidious glow of its murderous eyes.

There was no escape.

When she realized this, she knew that there was only one way for her to survive. It would be tricky and she most certainly hadn't attempted it before, but she no other choice. There was only thing she could do to save herself. She couldn't die and leave the Scraggy as the Sharpedo's next meal. She couldn't die for his sake.

She couldn't die for the sakes of all the children she still had to save.

She unfurled her tense tentacles into the water, allowing all but two of them to drift freely through the air. She kept her firm hold on the Scraggy as she watched the Sharpedo zero in on her. Any second now it would clamp its monstrous jaws down on her or the Scraggy. She had only one shot at this. One wrong move and that Sharpedo might rip off one of her tentacles or tear out one of her hearts.

She tried not to shudder as the Sharpedo finally closed in on her.

She waited until the jaws were just about to snap down on her head, and then dove beneath the beast. Then, just before the Sharpedo could change its course, she wrapped her tentacles around its entire body. She ignored the bristly touch as she tightened her grip around the Sharpedo and encircled its entire body to the best of her ability. The Sharpedo struggled, thrashing and snapping its jaws about, but it couldn't break free from her grasp.

The Octillery fastened her suckers to the Sharpedo, and then immediately flipped it belly up.

The savage beast suddenly stopped struggling. All of the ferocity in its eyes vanished as it became utterly limp in the water like a wayward strand of seaweed. Not a single part of its body twitched as the Octillery held it in this flipped position.

She kept her grip tight around the Sharpedo. Even though she had pacified it and forced it into an inert state, it was still alive. She could clearly see the movements in its gills. If she let go of the Sharpedo now, it would only turn itself back over and make a meal out of her. There was no reasoning with a feral hungry for her blood. If she ever wanted to make it back home, this Sharpedo had to perish. It was her life or its.

She didn't feel a shred of reluctance as she continued to hold the paralyzed, now almost peaceful Sharpedo in this vulnerable position. She only watched its gills with a cautious eye, their fluttering slowing with each minute.

When she could no longer see the gills moving nor feel a heartbeat emitting from the Sharpedo, she released her hold on the beast. She jetted away a few feet before stopping and bringing her eye back to the Sharpedo. She waited for the slightest bit of movement, the slightest twitch of its fins.

The Sharpedo remained completely still as the ocean currently slowly pushed it away. It wasn't long before the great killer was nothing more than the darkness of the vast ocean.

The Octillery watched the dead Sharpedo drift into the black for a moment longer, and then swam away.

* * *

The sun had begun to peer over the horizon by the time the Octillery finally stopped. Every part of her body ached and the tentacle the Sharpedo had bitten now had a numbing ache to it. She could barely feel the water brushing past her suckers on that particular tentacle as she jetted through the ocean. However, despite this, she still refused to look at it. She needed to get the Scraggy inside her home first. His safety was her primary objective. She'd rather that all of her tentacles be cut off than have the Scraggy have even one scratch anywhere on his body. She would assess her damage when he was entirely safe and out of harm's way.

Fortunately, the destination she sought stood right before her; a shallow underwater cavern. It lay brimming with coral that held all the colors of the rainbow. Just about every wall and rock to be found on the ocean floor was covered with such delicate beauty, allowing not a single speck of dull grey to be seen. Many of them swayed in the ocean's gentle currents, waving back and forth as if to welcome the Octillery back home after her long and arduous trip.

The Octillery couldn't help but want to wave back. She basked in the quiet and serene beauty of the reef. Huntail and Gorebyss weaved in and out of the coral. Corsola glimmered with iridescent colors in the light as they slept. Horsea flittered about with their tiny fins, swimming endless circles around the particularly rocky coral. The Octillery even thought she saw another of her kind slumbering inside an empty shell that once belonged to an Omastar.

There was no danger to be found here. No Sharpedo or Mareanie ever dwelled in this cavern. They made sure to stay far away from this haven, lest they evoke the wrath of the cavern's caretakers.

The Octillery swam past all of the coral and all of its residents until she reached one of the many holes in the ceiling of the great cave. She ascended up to the water's surface, and then crawled out of the vibrant cavern.

She now found herself inside the dry part of the cavern. Grey, smooth stone surrounded her completely. Moss grew here and there, particularly where the sun shined down through the gaps in the ceiling, but it didn't cover the cave nearly as much as the coral did. Compared to the reef, the actual cave seemed bleak and lifeless. The many tunnels that lead further down into darker areas of the cave didn't help matters.

However, the Octillery didn't mind. Not every part of her home had to be lively.

"Oh, I thought I heard someone surfacing around here."

The Octillery froze on the spot. She instinctually curled her arm around the Scraggy and hid him behind her head.

"Jera, relax. It's me, Ludo."

The Octillery looked into the nearest tunnel to see a Lombre slowly emerging from its dark depths. She could see how even though he spoke cautiously, he moved at a casual, almost hurried pace.

She loosened her grip around her sleeping Scraggy and set him down beside her. She noted that his gills were slowly disappearing. His skin slowly stitched itself back together, closing up the slits at a steady pace. She imagined in another few minutes they would be gone entirely. The blue tint to his skin would surely follow shortly after.

"Oh, who have you got here?" Ludo asked as he stopped before her and eyed the child.

"A Scraggy I found," Jera answered. "His parents abandoned him on the beach."

"Oh, that's just heart-breaking. I don't understand how his parents could have done that to him. It looks like he's been out there for a few days too. Look at how bony he is. Poor fellow."

"He'll be okay now that he's here. We have room for him, don't we?"

"Yeah, of course. Here, let me see him and I'll-"

Jera twisted a tentacle around the Scraggy's body from Ludo before he could even reach out with his claws. She saw him flinch at her sudden reaction. Jera couldn't help but flinch internally as well. She hadn't intended to react that way. It had been instinct.

"Actually, I want to hold onto him until he wakes up," she said in a subdued voice. "I worry that he won't react well to being around more strangers. It was already an effort to get him to trust me and come with me. I worry what he will do around you and the others."

"Well… I guess I can see why you'd say that," Ludo said as he scratched his head. "But are you sure you don't want me to take care of him for a while you take care of your arm? What happened with that anyway? It looks really bad."

It was then that Jera finally remembered that a Sharpedo had torn apart one of her tentacles earlier. She had been so preoccupied with getting the Scraggy to the cavern that she had completely forgotten about her arm's condition. She hadn't even felt the stinging, aching sensation in it because she had been so focused on just about everything else. Without wasting another moment, Jera glanced down at her injured tentacle and gave it a long, overdue assessment.

Her tentacle turned out to be in a much better condition than she had anticipated. While it did look absolutely gruesome with rows of deep puncture wounds digging deep into her arm and bits of flesh dangling limply off the sides, her arm still remained in one piece. She could still grasp with her suckers and move her arm. Granted, it hurt when she twisted it and she couldn't move it with as much dexterity as before, but it still functioned. She imagined with proper care her arm would eventually heal and its full capabilities would return in due time. She imagined it couldn't take more than a couple of weeks.

"It was a Sharpedo attack," Jera answered plainly as she brought her gaze back to the Lombre. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

"A Sharpedo did that to you?" Ludo asked with a pained grimace. "Yeowch. I'm amazed that's all it did to you. Hardly anyone escapes from those vicious things without missing claws or body parts. Or bleeding everywhere."

"Regardless of the attack and what it did to me, I have seven other tentacles that function just fine. There's no need to be bothered by one that doesn't work as well as it could."

"Are you sure about that? It's really no issue. Maybe Serenity can watch over him. You know how she has a way with children."

"I'm sure. I will look after this Scraggy for now."

"Alright… if you say so. I'll go tell the others that we've got another child here. We'll find a place to put him in. You sure you don't want me to get you anything for your arm while I'm doing that?"

"No. A good night's rest will provide me all I need."

"And you're sure you don't want us to watch that Scraggy while you're sleeping? What if he wakes up while you're trying to sleep?"

Jera could already feel herself losing patience with Ludo. He didn't know when to stop pestering her. He couldn't seem to understand that she had everything under control.

"Everything will be fine," Jera said, forcing herself to remain composed. "The child will be safe with me even though I am injured. He will be able to integrate with the others after we both rest for a time."

"Alright alright, I'll stop bothering you," the Lombre said with a sigh. "Go on and get some rest."

"I will."

Jera picked up the Scraggy off the ground and then carried him into one of the tunnels near her. She crawled through the darkness for a few moments, and then found herself in one of the cavern's many sleeping chambers. About a dozen kelp beds lay on the stone floor, all of them holding young Pokémon ranging from a Squirtle no older than eight months to a Staryu at the end of his adolescence. Jera could clearly see all of them sitting up in their beds, yawning, stretching, rubbing their eyes, and all forms of morning rituals depending on their anatomy. She imagined that they had all woken up only minutes ago.

She had only crawled for a short moment through the chamber when one of the children, a Pichu, pointed a tiny finger at her.

"Everyone, look!" she shouted in a chirpy voice. "It's Mama Jera! Mama Jera is here!"

Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and brought their gazes to the Octillery. Any lulling energy they might have been giving off promptly vanished as their eyes lit up. With a loud clamor of yelling, every single child sprang out of their beds and rushed toward Jera. The Octillery beamed at each of the children as they swarmed around her and playfully grabbed at her tentacles. She could smell all of the seaweed on each of their bodies.

"I missed you Mama Jera!" the Pichu said as she buried her face in the Octillery's tentacles.

"I missed you more, Mama Jera!" the Squirtle insisted. "Way more than Lya!"

"Mama Jera, we were wondering where you were!" a Totodile no older than eight said as he swung one of the Octillery's tentacles up and down. "You're usually here before we wake up!"

"Henry kept saying that something happened while you were gone!" a Froakie of three chimed in as he pointed to a Natu beside him. "He… He kept saying that some Sharkedo got you! He said that it ate you and that we wouldn't have you anymore!"

"Ah, well Henry was right. Almost," Jera said with a little laugh. "A Sharpedo did attack me while I was swimming home last night. See?"

She laid out her injured tentacle before the group. All of the children gasped as they let go out her and circled around the maimed arm. They pointed at it and dared each other to poke it with shuddering claws.

"Mama Jera's got blue coming out of her!" the Squirtle cried before he touched the blood before cringing back. "It's warm! It's sticky!"

"Why's there blue?" the Froakie asked. "Mama Jera is red and yellow. She's not blue!"

"That's her blood, Francis," the Staryu answered with a condescending scoffing sound.

"Blood isn't blue, dummy! Blood is red!" the Froakie shot back. "When Lya cut her paw with a rock, red came out of her!"

"Because Lya is a Pichu and lives on land. Octillery blood is blue because she doesn't take in oxygen like Lya. Mama Jera takes in oxygen through the water. She has something else in her blood that Lya doesn't that makes her blood blue."

"But Mama Jera can breathe on land just like us! Our blood isn't blue!"

"Octillery are special. They're not like us. She has something in her blood that we won't."

"Mama Jera, how did you escape from the Sharpedo?" the Totodile asked. "I thought they eat anyone they attack."

"I strangled it," Jera replied in a cheerful tone. "I grabbed him with my tentacles and I flipped him over. Killed him in minutes. I did it just like this!"

She wrapped three of her tentacles around the Totodile before promptly turning him upside-down. The Totodile started laughing giddily as he squirmed about. All of the other children soon laughed with him before pulling at her tentacles.

"I wanna be flipped over too!" the Pichu squealed. "I wanna know how that Sharkedo felt!"

"Me too!" the Froakie cried. "I wanna go next! Pick me, pick me!"

Jera laughed as she took as many children as she could in her available tentacles and turned them upside-down. Every single one of them laughed all the more heartily as the blood rushed to their heads and disoriented them. It only encouraged both them and their grounded friends to laugh harder.

"Are we going to die if we get flipped over?" an Eevee about five years old asked timidly, the only one not laughing in the group.

"Only if you're a Sharpedo," the Staryu answered for Jera. "They only die when you flip them over because they can't breathe anymore. Flipping them over paralyzes them. Flipping over anyone else just makes everything look weird."

"So if I ever come across a Sharpedo, I should flip it over then?" the Eevee asked with a tilt of her head.

"I think you should just swim away," the Staryu answered. "You don't exactly have anything that'll let you turn it over. You don't have tentacles like Mama Jera."

"I'll grow tentacles then! I'll evolve and become a Vaporeon, and I'll grow tentacles so I can strangle Sharpedos! Just like Mama Jera!"

"You can't grow tentacles as a Vaporeon. Vaporeon don't have tentacles."

"I'll have some! I'll get a water stone and when I evolve, I'll tell the stone to give me tentacles! And then I'll have tentacles instead of paws and I can strangle Sharpedo!"

"That's not how it… you know what, never mind. Let me know how that goes when you get yourself a water stone and become a Vaporeon, Daisy."

"Hey look everyone! Mama Jera has someone behind her back!" a Mudkip then cried.

Everyone stopped laughing and looked toward the Mudkip. He stood right next to the entangled Scraggy, who somehow managed to stay asleep despite all of the noise. Jera gently set each of the children down and allowed them to gather around the Scraggy. They all watched him with curious eyes, as though he were an entirely new species of Pokémon they had never seen before.

"Ah, I almost forgot to tell each of you something," Jera said. "This is your newest brother. I found him today and he is going to be a part of our family as soon as he wakes up."

"He looks kind of funny," the Froakie stated. "Why does his skin do that around his chest? What are those things sticking out of his chest?"

"He's very hungry," Jera explained somberly. "He hasn't had the best things to eat. He's going to look like this for a little while. But he'll look a lot better when he's had more to eat."

"We can feed him Clauncher!" the Mudkip suggested. "Clauncher fatten you up! Just look at Henry!"

"Shut up! You eat Clauncher all the time too!" the Natu hissed. "You can barely run without passing out!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Henry, Marsh, that's enough," Jera cut in with a harsh tone. "I don't want you two fighting. You'll wake up your new brother. He's very tired and needs rest."

"Okay Mama Jera…" they both said in unison as they hung their heads.

"Good," she said as she gently caressed both of their heads, bringing a smile to each of their faces. "Now then, I was going to get some sleep. I had to swim a long ways to find your brother and strangle a Sharpedo too."

"Awwwwwww!" all of the children whined at once.

"Mama Jera, can't you stay up a little bit more?" the Pichu asked.

"Please? Pretty please?" the Froakie asked as well.

"Sleeping is boring!" the Squirtle added. "We wanna play more with you!"

"I wish I could, but I really do need sleep," Jera said softly. "But I promise, when I wake up, I'll play with all of you. And so will your new brother. I'll take all of you to the coral reef in the cavern and we'll play hide and seek."

"Yay! Hide and seek!"

"I love hide and seek in the coral!"

"None of you guys are going to be able to find me!"

"I bet I can find all of you in five seconds! I'm the best!"

"I bet I can find all of you in one second!"

"I bet I can find all of you in zero seconds!"

"You can't find someone in zero seconds!"

"Can too!"

"Can not!"

"Can too!"

Jera laughed as she watched the children before her then bicker amongst one another, each one claiming to be the best of their siblings. She could still remember the horrendous conditions she had originally found each of them. Henry's family could never have a pleasant conversation, always bickering and screaming at each other over the most trivial of things. Marsh's parents refused to allow him to leave the house under the fear that he would hurt himself. They would lock him inside each and every day, never allowing anyone to see him. Daisy's parents held the most absurd expectations about their daughter, for instance always telling her to eat very specific types of food at very specific times. They had even wanted her to evolve into an Espeon the moment she turned four so that she would become the island's sole psychic and serve as its supposed seer.

Each of these children had stories that broke Jera's hearts. She could still remember how much she had to hold back tears when she found some of them battered and bruised, inches away from death.

All of the children standing before Jera had such dysfunctional families. All of these children were doomed to a life of emotional hardships and psychological damage thanks to their parents.

But thanks to Jera, their fate had changed. Once miserable Pokémon, now they laughed and smiled and developed as any normal child ought to. Not a single one held any development delays and all were quite social, playful children.

The very thought of that made each of Jera's hearts melt.

She slinked away as the children threw juvenile insults at one another and retreated to her bed on the far side of the chamber. Unlike all of the children's beds, hers was the remains of a Cloyster shell. It was an odd choice for a bed, she knew that. All the others in the cavern slept in much more roomy materials such as kelp, feathers, straw, or even furs of various land Pokémon they had caught. However, Jera found no better comfort than to be surrounded completely in hard shell. It added a sense of protection and security she could feel almost nowhere else.

The Octillery set the Scraggy down, and then crawled inside her bed. She shifted about until she found a comfortable position to settle into. Then, she pulled the Scraggy closer to her so that he was just outside of the shell, but still resting close to her head. She wrapped him up in two of her tentacles so that it almost seemed like she was cradling him.

"Welcome to your new home, my little child," she whispered softly. "You'll love it here."

The Scraggy remained asleep, but she thought she saw the smallest hint of a smile from him.

Jera watched the little Scraggy for a few more moments, and then gave in to the lethargy slowly washing over her.


	6. Let Me Help You

Glace immediately regretted opening a dimensional tear.

The moment that the Weavile widened the hole in the ethereal binding of the multiverse, it sucked her right out of Yore's watchtower. She could do nothing as it tore her out of the Tranquill's realm and violently thrust her into the new dimension.

She screamed as the tear threw her into the sky and sent her plummeting to the ground. She attempted to right herself, twisting and turning through the air, but it did little good. She could barely hold her position for more than a few seconds before the wind flipped her into an awkward position. She could feel the wind drying up the tears in her eyes as her stomach twisted painfully. She clawed at the air as her heart jolted in her chest, threatening to leap right out of her body.

 _Why am I falling?! Why did the tear shoot me into the sky?!_

 _I don't know! Maybe because you absorbed Yore, it thought you could fly or something!_

 _That doesn't make any sense!_

 _Well I don't know why! It's the best explanation I got!_

 _Isn't there any way we can help her, Sonata? Can't she turn into one of us so that she can fly?_

 _No, our bodies are gone! They disappeared the second we merged with her?_

 _Does that mean Glace is going to die then?_

 _No! We're not... she's not going to die! There's a way out of this, I know it!_

 _Like what?! What's my way out of this?! Tell me your great plan, Sonata before I splatter into a million pieces!_

 _I'm thinking of something!_

 _I never should have opened that tear without looking in it first. I should have seen where it was going to drop me off. But no, you said it'd be fine! You said there was nothing to worry about!_

 _I didn't know it would do this! It's never dropped me off into the sky before!_

 _Both of you stop fighting! It's-_

Glace hit something hard. All of the air in her lungs left her as her descent abruptly ceased. She inhaled sharply as something dark and murky quickly washed over her. It wrapped itself around her entirely, and then pulled her down. Something harsh and suffocating rushed into her mouth and nose as she sank deeper and deeper into the darkness. Glace could feel the darkness weighing down on her mind, lulling her to sleep even though it burned her lungs.

She couldn't stop herself from closing her eyes.

 _Glace, you've got to get to air! We're going to drown here!_

 _Where is… here? Where are we…?_

 _Somewhere underwater!_

 _So we're in water… so that's why I'm not dead yet…_

 _Yeah but you're going to be if you don't start swimming right now! Come on, get to the surface! Open your mouth and follow the air bubbles!_

Glace absently opened her eyes before opening her mouth as well. Not even a second later, a few, minuscule bubbles escaped from her mouth. They slid past her face and above her head before disappearing into the darkness.

 _Come on, go after them!_

The Weavile sluggishly moved her arms. They moved fluidly through the water, miraculously not broken despite the fall. The movement drove out the lull overtaking her mind, and with it, vigor returned to both her arms and legs. Her murmuring heart once again thudded loudly in her ears as the true gravity of the situation dawned upon Glace. She nearly inhaled a mouthful of water, but stopped herself just before it could go down her throat.

Glace righted herself up in the water, and then opened her mouth once again. More air bubbles rose out of her and drifted high above her head. She wasted no time in going after them. She kicked her feet and swept her arms through the black water with all her might, all the while resisting the urge to breathe in. Her lungs still stung and the intensity grew with each stroke, but she forced herself to keep her mouth closed.

After seemingly an eternity later, Glace's head finally emerged from the water.

She took in a deep, sharp breath before coughing harshly. She vomited up a small pillar of water before hacking up stray droplets here and there. She could still feel the burn in her lungs, but it didn't sting nearly as ferociously as when she had been submerged deep into the water. She wiped at her eyes with her claws as she hacked up every last bit of water from her lungs and mouth.

 _Oh thank goodness, you made it. You really had me worried there._

 _I'm very glad you made it back to the surface. Are you okay, Glace?_

 _No. I almost drowned. I'm most certainly not okay._

 _I see… I'm sorry I couldn't help you. I really am. If it were possible, I would have given you my wings in a heartbeat._

Glace felt her heart sink deep into her chest. She could practically see Yore shirking in her mind's eye, averting his gaze from her. She coughed a bit more, and then sighed.

 _It wasn't your fault. Nothing about this was._

 _Yeah, it was my fault anyway. I really didn't consider that just maybe the tear would do that to you. We really should have just tried to peek inside the dimension. It's just that, you know, I can fly so I never have to worry about if I'm going to free fall…_

 _Can we even do that though? I open that tear just a tiny bit and then it sucks me right in._

 _Right… that's a problem. Oh, I wish I could have figured out more about dimensional travel. I'm sure that there's a way to just peer into the dimension you want to go to, but I never figured out how. It's all just so complicated and weird…_

 _I'm afraid too much of our situation doesn't sound logical. Why just a few moments ago, we were at my old sentry post. Now we're in a body of water that doesn't feel anything like the lakes near my home._

It was then that Glace realized that she had no idea where they actually were. She had been so busy panicking in the midst of her fall that she hadn't bothered to take in any of her surroundings. She wiped the last bits of water out of her eyes, and then removed her claws from her face.

She found that everything around her was black. It was exactly the same as it had been underwater; dark, endless, and lifeless. She couldn't see a single thing around her as she floated on the water's surface. She had the moon high above her, but its pale light couldn't help her. It only illuminated a small part of the water surrounding her. If anything, it made her feel even more alone.

Glace tasted the water. It filled her mouth a strong, salty taste that instantly made her thirsty. She quickly spat it out wiped at her mouth with her arm.

 _Oh, we're in the ocean, Glace. My caretakers told me that the ocean tasted as salty as that._

 _The ocean. Great. Of all the places we had to land, it had to be the one domain I've never bothered with…_

 _You've never been to the ocean?_

 _No, why should I? Weavile have no business with the ocean. We don't belong there. Our bodies were meant specifically for mountains and snowy regions._

 _A fair point._

The Weavile squinted her eyes and glanced around. She could still only see nothing but black all around her. She couldn't see even the vaguest outline of an island anywhere. She could barely see her pearly claws in the water.

Still, staying still wouldn't solve anything. It wasn't as though the land were going to make its way toward her. Not only that, but more worrying thoughts slowly trickled into her mind. Namely, what swam below the dark depths of the ocean. They could just be harmless Feebas or Finneon that Glace saw at the markets. They could do nothing more than tickle the soles of her feet. But they could also be treacherous Tentacruel, watching her with their cold eyes while filling their tentacles with thick, immobilizing poison. Glace could practically feel something clammy wrapping around her legs right now. It would only be a matter of moments before she would be dragged back down into the dark water and welcomed by the insidious red glow that spelt her doom.

Glace set her sights toward the moon, and then swam toward it. It was an awkward swim, one where she paddled her arms and legs under the water as a four-legged Pokémon might attempt to do, but it got the job done. She made her way through the waves and progressed at an adequate pace. That itself was a miracle when no one had ever taught her how to swim.

Glace didn't know how long it would take to find land or if she was even going in the right direction. But she couldn't stay still. She couldn't let those imaginary Tentacruel ensnare her.

But maybe there weren't only Tentacruel. Maybe there were even more horrific creatures down below. She didn't know what they could be; no one had ever told her about the creatures of the deep. She only knew about Tentacruel because of a story she had overheard in the dojo. For all she knew, eldritch creatures with bladed fins and mouths with hundreds of jagged teeth swam just beneath her. Or worse, they could be so monstrous in size that they could swallow her up in one gulp.

She wouldn't be able to see any of them coming for her until it was too late. In the endless ocean smothered in night, she had no means to defend herself. Her quick feet, her hooked claws, and even her domain over the cold could offer her no help.

Glace swam a little more vigorously. No, she would find land before any of those monsters even caught a glimpse of her. She would find a haven soon. There was no reason to think she would die in this dimension. Everything would be fine. She would find land soon.

The Weavile made sure to keep her nose above the water as she swam. It was difficult, but she managed. She couldn't remember the last time she had ever been in the water. But she could now see why she had never felt the desire to be amongst the water-types; it felt too alien. There was nothing solid beneath your feet. Your claws couldn't swipe through the water with the efficiency you wanted. You had to move with both your arms and your legs to get anywhere.

Minutes passed and Glace still couldn't see any semblance of land in her sight. She could already feel her arms and legs starting to ache. It was becoming harder to breathe as well. Glace ignored the pain and kept swimming.

Many more minutes went by and Glace saw no salvation in sight. She hadn't even seen a flicker of the ominous red she dreaded. Only vast darkness had kept her company.

 _There has to be land somewhere. We couldn't have landed that far away from civilization._

 _Sonata, are you sure that we can't grant Glace the use of our wings? I'm deeply worried for her safety. She can only swim for much longer before she overexerts herself._

 _Well I really don't think it's going to work… but I'll give it a try._

It was then that a stabbing pain shot through Glace's skull. She abruptly stopped as she clutched her head with her hands, resisting the urge to dig her claw tips deep into her scalp. She groaned and squirmed as she squeezed her eyes shut. She could already feel the tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

 _Stop, stop! Stop whatever you're doing!_

 _Alright, alright!_

The pain stopped just as quickly as it came. Glace took in a few deep breaths as she rubbed her temples with the blunt part of her claws. When she had gathered her bearings, she lowered her claws and opened her eyes. Nothing but the empty ocean greeted her.

 _Never do that again._

 _I'm sorry Glace. I shouldn't have suggested that. I didn't think that it would hurt you._

 _It's fine. I just don't want you or Sonata to try that again. I'm a Weavile; there's no point in trying to change that._

 _Of course. I should never have tried to challenge that fact._

Glace could feel a pit grow in the bottom of her stomach. She tried not to grimace as the feeling reached into her chest and twisted her heart.

 _Looks like you're just going to have to keep swimming. But hey, maybe the sun will rise soon and then we can see everything better!_

 _I really hope so, Sonata. I'd like to be able to see again._

The Weavile took another moment of rest, and then got moving once again. The ache in her chest and stomach vanished the moment she did. However, the same couldn't be said about the pain in her limbs. Her arms and legs still protested and she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep swimming. She needed to find even the smallest hint of an island soon or else she might have to spend the night drifting along the ocean's surface.

The very thought that made the pain pulsing through her body a little more bearable.

Neither Yore nor Sonata talked to Glace as she swam through the water. She only kept her thoughts focused solely on finding any speck of land. She didn't think about how long she had to swim, when morning would come, or how large the ocean could even be. These thoughts would only slow her down. They would lull her and make her sink back into the dark waves.

It was after remaining in this empty state of mind for what felt to be many long, endless hours did Glace finally come across land. It was a tiny island, one that she could barely make out in the darkness, but it would do.

Glace pushed herself more as she swam straight for the island. As she neared it, she could see that it really was quite small. Only about three palm trees grew out of the sand with thin patches of green growing around them. She imagined that not a single living creature dwelt on such a small settlement.

However, she couldn't dwell in these thoughts, because the second she emerged from the water and crawled onto the island, her body gave out on her.

She couldn't even feel the soft sand or foliage as she hit the ground and slipped away.

* * *

When Glace came to, the first thing she noticed was that she felt cool. She couldn't feel a single drop of water or grain of sand clinging to her body. She only felt something comforting beneath her, something akin to her bed. It had always been so welcoming after a long day of teaching at the dojo. So soft like downy feathers, yet firm enough that you didn't sink into it like mud.

The Weavile slowly opened her eyes. Endless blurs of evergreen flooded into her vision. That didn't seem right to her. She blinked a few times, and her vision changed. Now she saw hundreds of blades of grass beneath her. They swayed in a non-existent wind and lightly brushed against her face.

Glace couldn't help but stare at the grass. There hadn't been this much grass on the island. Granted, she had only seen it for a few seconds before she passed out, but the grass was too thick for it to be growing on an island. This more resembled what she might find on forest flooring.

The Weavile pushed herself off the ground with her claws and looked up. What she saw before her nearly made her gasp.

There, looming over her like a tower, stood a tree. It was a massive tree, stretching so high into the sky that it would take hours just to climb up its cobalt canopy. And even then, Glace wasn't sure how she was supposed to climb the tree. The trunk, rather than being one solid mass, seemed to be multiple tendrils of pale gold wood entwined with one another and spiraling up. All the bark held a sheen similar to that of a polished gem.

Hundreds of lengthy vines hung from the branches and dangled far out of Glace's reach. They each radiated with milky colors that didn't seem out of a place in a surreal, comforting dream. Something about standing in their soft glow made Glace feel oddly nostalgic. She almost felt like a little Sneasel again, one who could run for miles and miles through the winter lands and never grow tired.

In fact, just standing before this great tree was enough to make Glace feel this way. Something about basking in its enormous shadow made everything seem so whimsical. She couldn't stop herself from getting up and drawing closer to the tree. She carefully climbed over each of the tree's thick, exposed roots at least five times her size as she neared it. She only vaguely noticed that the roots felt warm and seemed to pulse beneath her touch.

Glace stopped when she reached the very base of the tree. She craned her neck up and stared up at the canopy again. She could see now that it didn't hold leaves in its branches like all other trees in her dimension. They held a more wraith-like appearance, as if they were mere smoke wisps taking on the vague form of leaves. And yet, they seemed so very far away, maybe even further away than before. She wasn't even sure if she could reach the canopy if she had wings. It seemed forever out of reach. And yet, it called to her. She could hear it beckoning her, telling her to climb up the winding trunk, nestle in its branches, and take in the ethereal haze.

"What kind of tree is this?"

Glace snapped out of her trance. She blinked and then turned toward the source of the voice. Her heart jolted when she saw who it was.

There, standing not far from her, were Yore and Sonata.

No longer were they nothing more than voices in her head. They had regained their physical forms, once again a Tranquill and Noivern. Not only that, but their forms were without blemish. Sonata's injured eye had completely healed, not even a single scar to be seen. Yore's feathers seemed to have a brighter gloss to them, as though he had recently preened himself or perhaps taken a long bath.

Glace could see both of them staring up at the marvelous tree, their eyes glimmering with an almost hatchling-like light. The Weavile could only imagine they felt just as much wonderment as she had earlier.

"You two aren't inside of me anymore," Glace stated, not even bothering to keep the surprise out of her voice.

The two fragments snapped their gazes over to Glace. It only took them a few seconds to understand Glace's statement. The moment they did, their pupils dilated. They both looked over themselves, carefully raising their feet and flapping their wings.

"I have a body again… wow. It feels so weird to have one again," Sonata remarked as she checked her tail.

"But why do we have one?" Yore then wondered. "Did something happen when you found that island, Glace?"

"No, nothing happened," Glace replied. "I remember I that I reached the island, and then I passed out. I don't think anything else happened."

"Well none of that explains anything. Including why we're here," Sonata stated. "Wherever here is. At this… um, giant tree?"

The three fragments brought their attention back to the towering tree. It still stood before them and sheltered them in its cool shade. Glace couldn't help but notice that the vines seemed to be glowing a little more brightly now. She even thought she saw a few of them swaying in a non-existent wind.

"Do any of you know about this tree?" Yore asked.

"Nope, never seen anything like it," Sonata said with a shake of her head. "It's a pretty cool tree though. I wouldn't mind living around a tree like this. I bet it attracts a lot of tasty food. Maybe it even grows some nice fruit too."

"I've never seen this tree either," Glace said. "It seems almost kind of magical."

"I can see that. I don't know many trees that glow with strange lights like this one does," Yore said with a nod. "Perhaps we should investigate the tree? It seems that there's nothing else around here that's noteworthy."

Glace looked out into the distance. She had been so entranced by the tree that she hadn't bothered to take in the rest of her surroundings. However, upon doing so, she realized there hadn't been much of a point in doing so. The land seemed to stretch for a mile away from the tree, and then abruptly stop, vanishing without a trace. Beyond that, only a golden sky with wispy clouds awaited. It reminded Glace very much of the island she had collapsed on; a tiny haven amidst an eternal ocean. However, instead of the tree being surrounded by water, it was now hovering in the sky with a ball of light perpetually setting into an imaginary horizon.

The land surrounding the tree was indeed beautiful, filled with vibrant flowers of all kinds that glimmered like diamonds, but it paled in comparison to the tree. Before the enormous tree and its otherworldly wonder, everything else surrounding it might as well have been dirt. Only the sea of gold surrounding the island from every angle could rival the spectacle of the tree.

"Yeah, let's investigate the tree," Glace said after a moment. "There's not much else we can do."

Yore nodded once and then spread out his wings. However, just as he seemed ready to push off the ground, a new sound emitted through the air. It sounded like feathers rustling.

All three of the fragments looked up to see a blue, avian Pokémon with white, puffy wings that resembled clouds. It seemed to be descending directly toward them.

"Let's hide," Glace said quickly. "I have a feeling we're not supposed to be here."

Without wasting another second, Glace hurried toward the nearest root she could find. She vaulted right over it with one fluid motion. Glace didn't even register hitting the ground as she hid behind the root and peered over its edge. She saw Yore and Sonata rushing toward her with similar haste. Within seconds, they joined the Weavile behind the massive root, though Yore seemed to be having more difficulty hiding myself than either of the girls. He couldn't quite hide his head as easily despite his smaller size. Glace considered pushing his head down to better conceal him, but changed her mind when she saw that his feathers didn't stand out much against the wood.

Glace watched as the Altaria settled right where the three had been standing before. She fluffed her feathers for just a moment, sending cotton-like particles up into the air like dandelion seeds, and then straightened her posture. She brought her solemn gaze to the ethereal tree.

"Greetings, oh great Keeper of Realms," the Altaria said with a small bow of her head. "I hope that I have not disturbed you. I come bearing news as a mere messenger to those more worthy of your presence."

A golden orb several times the Altaria's size manifested right before her. She didn't move as the brilliant glow slowly took on a more distinguishable shape. Something that seemed to stand on four elongated legs and had large appendages protruding out of its head. They seemed so sharp that Glace was sure they could pierce through any Pokémon's flesh with enough force.

When the orb finished its transformation, the light vanished, and there stood a creature in its place. It was a great furred creature of black and blue with antlers adorned with brilliant lights. It held itself tall above the Altaria and gazed down upon her with its sapphire eyes. It had one of its front legs over the other in an almost dignified, regal manner. And yet, Glace couldn't feel any bit of condescension from this majestic creature. She only felt tranquility in the air all around her, as though its mere presence had smothered out every evil in the world and left only serenity and harmony to frolic about.

" _ **What do the gods desire of me?"**_

"The gods desire a meeting with you," the Altaria spoke, still keeping her head bowed. "They would appreciate it if you could meet them in the Hall of Origin at your earliest convenience."

" _ **A meeting? My, I have not been called to a meeting in quite some time nor have I ever thought there to be the time for one. All has been relatively well in all of the realms, save for a miniscule rip in the dimensional barriers."**_

"They said there was something they wanted to speak to you about. They wouldn't say the purpose of the meeting, only that you come as soon as you can."

" _ **I understand. Well then messenger, tell the gods that I will see them shortly. I only need to look over a few of the realms for potential anomalies."**_

"Very well, thank you for your cooperation, Keeper of Realms."

With that, the Altaria opened her wings and flew up into the golden sky. The horned creature watched her go in silence. Glace couldn't help but notice that a misty glaze had formed over its eyes now. The mystic, calming aura that it once radiated slowly filled the air with a thick, muddled feeling that made Glace's skin crawl. She even thought she saw some of the vines of the tree shudder for just a moment.

The mystical stag-like being watched the last of the Altaria disappear into the far distance and then closed its eyes. Golden globes sprouted from its body and sent them flying up into the air. With each orb that bubbled out of the creature, its body grew more and more transparent. Within seconds, the entire body was nothing more than a cluster of blinking lights. They filled up all of Glace's vision with their radiance, drowning out the entire island in their brilliance. The meadow, the sky, her other selves, even the very tree all melted into the gold of the horned one's disappearing body. The glint became her entire world as it enveloped her. It welcomed her in its warm grasp, wordlessly whispering in her ears that she was safe and sound. It nestled her and stroked her head with the tenderness of a loving mother soothing her hatchling to sleep.

Glace couldn't stop herself from closing her eyes as the gold whisked her away into a peaceful nothingness.

* * *

"How much longer until we get to Palm Island? I can't remember how long we've been out here."

"We passed by Wayward Island just the other day, and the distance between Palm and Wayward is about… three days. We've seen two sunsets already, so not much longer. I imagine we should arrive by dawn tomorrow, maybe even by sunset tonight if the wind is on our side."

"Ah, good. I can't wait to finally reach that island. I heard that they have amazing greenberries. Supposedly the best in the whole world. "

"Heh, well if you have the money for them, sure. They aren't cheap, you know."

"Oh don't worry; I've been saving up for this. I'm not about to stop by Palm Island and not get the best greenberries on the planet. Who knows when we'll ever come back."

Glace didn't recognize the voices. They both sounded male, adults about her age as well, but she could discern nothing else.

She opened her eyes and was immediately met with a harsh burst of light. Glace squeezed her eyelids back shut. She could see red fuzzy dots dancing behind her eyelids, which certainly didn't help ease the mild discomfort shifting through her head. She rubbed at her eyes and turned over onto her side, all the while groaning miserably.

"Oh hey, look. Your little castaway is waking up."

"Huh, you're right. She really is still alive."

Glace heard footsteps and the sound of wood creaking. She quieted down as she listened to the creatures make their way towards her. She couldn't tell what they were, but given they didn't make too much sound when they moved, she imagined they weren't very big.

When the creaking stopped, Glace finally forced herself to open her eyes, if only a tiny bit. The brilliant light still flooded into her vision, but it wasn't nearly as strong. It was currently being blocked by two figures leering over her. Glace blinked a few times before opening her eyes completely.

She now saw that the two figures were actually a Vigoroth and Slowking. They both stared at her with bemused glares, as if she were an entirely new species of Pokémon. Glace honestly considered that could very well be the case in this dimension.

"Hey there, welcome back to the world of the living," the Vigoroth said with a wry smile.

Glace sat up, prompting the two to take a few steps back. Glace ignored them as she rubbed her head with her claws. She noticed that her fur felt quite dry, but still smelt heavily of seawater. She didn't know why that was. There had been no sign of an ocean when she had been visiting that strange tree.

It was then that Glace remembered what had happened to her before she had been whisked away to the tree. The dark water swallowing her up and the endless hours of swimming through the darkness all came rushing back to her. She could just faintly remember seeing the white sand before she blacked out. And yet, there was no sand beneath her now. She only felt planks of rough wood that threatened to put splinters into her.

It was with this thought that Glace finally took a moment to take in her surroundings. She was on a wooden contraption of some sort. It hoisted a white cloth from a large pole protruding out of the flooring, which made loud ruffling noises as the wind breezed past it. It wasn't a very large vessel, only enough room to hold maybe twenty more Pokémon, but it was still a sight to behold.

But what was even more surprising was that the contraption was moving in the ocean. It somehow stayed afloat despite how heavy it seemed, sailing through the blue water with ease. The device would rock every so often as the waves collided against it, but never enough for Glace to feel as though she would be hurled into the water.

Glace brought her gaze back to the two Pokémon to find that they hadn't averted their gazes from her.

"Where am I?" she asked. "What exactly am I sitting on?"

"Well you're on a boat," the Vigoroth answered with a small chuckle. "What, you've never seen one of these things before?"

"No, I haven't," Glace said carefully. "Where I come from, we don't have boats."

"Wow, are you serious? What island are you from that doesn't know what a boat is?" the Vigoroth asked.

"Perhaps she's from one of those secluded islands that refuse to make trades with the others," the Slowking suggested. "I think there was one near where you found her."

"Well, it would explain her species," the Vigoroth shrugged. "Still can't believe she doesn't know what a boat is. Figured everyone on the planet knows what they are."

"Apparently they don't as your little castaway has proven," the Slowking stated.

"How did you two find me?" Glace cut in.

"Oh, Matt here found you collapsed on a little island while we were sailing around," the Slowking replied. "He thought that you were dying and wanted to bring you with us. He didn't feel like you should die on such a lonely island."

"You don't have to put it like that…" Matt said with a glower.

"I could have put it in worse ways," the Slowking answered plainly before bring his gaze back to Glace. "But either way, looks like you're not dying after all."

"Not anymore anyway," Glace remarked.

"Would you care to explain why you were on that island?" the Slowking then asked. "It's been bothering me ever since we dragged you on board. Especially when no one's seen your species, or any ice-type for that matter, for centuries. You're a complete enigma I'm just itching to understand."

Glace frowned. She had been hoping that the conversation wouldn't come to this, but she realized it was inevitable. She was too much of a curious subject to not question.

"There's still Weavile in the world," Glace answered. "We just prefer living in secluded clans of our species than with other Pokémon. It's easier to live with your own kind than outsiders you can never hope to fully understand."

"And your kind can stand the island climates?" the Slowking then asked. "I imagine it'd be so easy to develop hyperthermia as an ice-type."

"That's a myth uninformed Pokémon made up. We might prefer the cold areas of the north, but we can adjust to practically any climate with enough time. The only one we can't stand is the desert, but most Pokémon can't either."

"Alright, fair enough. I'll believe that for now. But that doesn't explain why you were on that tiny island. I don't think many Pokémon that aren't water-types swim out in the great ocean without a boat."

Glace stared out at the sea beside her. Just as during the night, it stretched endlessly into the distance from every direction she faced. While the water wasn't black and treacherous now, instead being a serene blue that matched the sky above, it didn't erase the fact that she couldn't spot land anywhere in sight. In a way, her circumstances hadn't changed much. She was still stranded in the middle of the ocean, only now she was on a drifting boat with two curious Pokémon instead of on a stationary island.

"I was trying to catch something near the shore," Glace answered effortlessly, still watching the ocean. "I followed it out into the sea and then, next thing I knew, I had been dragged out miles away from the island without a clue of how to get back. It didn't take much longer for me to go under and black out. I imagine I drifted onto that island by sheer coincidence."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that," the Slowking said quietly. "It sounds to me that you got caught in a rip current. They truly create harrowing experiences for anyway. It's miraculous that you survived honestly."

Glace didn't say anything, but she did bring her gaze back to the two Pokémon. She found they were both shooting her long frowns and that their postures had sunk a slight amount.

"Listen, Rob and I were heading out to Palm Island right now to pick up a few things for our own island," the Vigoroth said. "We imagine we should be there by tonight or tomorrow morning. After we finish our business there, did you want us to bring you back to your island? It's on our way home, so it wouldn't be an inconvenience."

 _Aw, that's thoughtful of them. You're lucky that you found these two, Glace._

 _I don't need them to bring me back to a non-existent island though. They'll realize I was lying if I do._

 _Yeah, that's true. Alright, let's get dropped off at that Palm Island they were talking about. Maybe we'll even find Jera there. Would be nice to find one of our other selves without wandering around for days._

"No, it's alright," Glace said as Sonata's voice left her mind. "You don't need to do that for me. You can bring me to Palm Island and I'll stay there."

"Are you really sure about that?" Matt asked. "It really wouldn't be a hassle."

"No, I'm fine," Glace insisted. "Take me to Palm Island and drop me off there."

"I imagine that your clan is worried about you," the Vigoroth continued to say.

Glace felt a flicker of resentment stir within her. She had to resist scowling as the poisonous feeling seeped into her blood.

"I want to go to Palm Island," she stated firmly. "I don't want to be dropped off at my island."

"Really, if you're worried that taking you home would be a burden, it's not," the Vigoroth went on. "I really don't want anyone worrying about you. I've got my own family, you know? One beautiful mate and two lovely daughters. If any of them were to suddenly go missing and no one knew where they were, you can sure bet that I would-"

Something within Glace snapped. It broke her icy façade and took full control of her tongue before she could comprehend what it was.

"My clan doesn't care that I'm gone," Glace said with sudden venom in her voice. "They don't want me anymore. I'm no one to them. They've refused to let me participate in any of their hunts for the past few weeks. They would let the weakest Sneasel with the shortest claws go instead of me. Then while the hunting parties were out, they would stick me in a cave or in a tree hollow and make me stay there until meal time. I couldn't do anything except sit there and scratch shapes into the walls. So don't you dare tell me that they miss me and want me back."

An awkward silence fell over the group, interrupted only by the sounds of the ocean rocking the boat. The Vigoroth and Slowking stood there, completely stunned and speechless. Even Yore and Sonata didn't make a single remark within Glace's mind. When the Weavile realized what a scene she had created, she forced her gaze back onto the waves. She tried to ignore the rotten feeling gnawing in her chest.

"Drop me off at Palm Island," she muttered quietly. "There's nowhere else for me."

"Of course," the Slowking said with a small nod. "If that's what you want."

And with that, the two sailors let Glace be as they made their way to the nose of the ship, granting her the quiet and solitude she desperately needed.

* * *

Glace watched the sun begin its descent in the watery horizon as she munched on a Magikarp the sailors had fished out of the ocean moments ago. She didn't care much for the flavor, finding it to be too chewy and salty for her tastes, but ate it nonetheless. She needed the nourishment. Then also, she could practically feel Yore craving it for himself. She could feel it in her mouth, that insatiable need to sink her fangs into this raw Magikarp that she had never felt before. And even though biting into the Magikarp didn't fill her with the savory taste she anticipated, it still numbed the craving itself.

 _Why do you even eat Magikarp anyway, Yore? Tranquill don't usually eat meat. They eat berries or bugs I believe._

 _I was raised by Talonflame who treated me as though I were a Fletchling. They didn't know how to care for a Pidove, so they taught me what they knew. If what you say is true however, then it would explain why I had a difficult time grabbing the Magikarp out of the water for the longest time._

Glace peered over at the Slowking and Vigoroth. She found that they were standing at the front of the boat, pointing at something in the distance and discussing how much further they needed to sail. They hadn't bothered her much since she told them to drop her off at Palm Island, save for giving her the Magikarp. They had mostly kept to themselves throughout the day, something Glace felt quite grateful for.

She gazed out at the sun once again. She saw how it had become a great ball of golden light as it dipped down over the ocean, dying the sky around it with its glow. It reminded her of the strange sky that surrounded the tree from earlier.

It was with this thought that Glace started to wonder just what exactly that tree had been and the strange events that had unfolded around it. She could practically see the enormous plant in her mind right now, glimmering with its milky and peaceful colors.

 _You two remember being at that tree, don't you?_

 _Yeah, hard to forget that! I had my body back and everything. And my eye wasn't all messed up! Felt great!_

 _Yes, the same. Do you still not know how we arrived at that tree, Glace?_

 _No, I don't. I blacked out, and then I woke up at that tree. I don't know how I got there and how you two were in your own bodies. Or anything about that Altaria and that horned creature we saw. Nothing there made much sense._

 _Well I think that thing that was talking to the Altaria was supposed to be the Keeper of Realms or whatever that Altaria said. So, maybe that person was a god or something like that? Would explain why he was glowing and why he appeared and disappeared with all those gold lights. It didn't look like any legendaries I know of though. And I sure don't know any legends about some giant tree in the middle of some floating island. But you know, if that thing really was a Keeper of Realms, maybe it's got something to do with us._

It was then that Glace finally realized something that she hadn't before. Something that she had somehow overlooked despite it being incredibly obvious in hindsight.

 _That horned creature had the same voice as the creature talking to me in that vision._

 _Wait a minute… you're right, Glace! They do have the same voice! Wow, good catch. I kind of forgot what it sounded like because it only said like two things and it was a while ago._

 _I don't quite understand what you two are talking about._

 _Oh, right. I don't think you saw a vision like Glace and I._

 _What vision?_

 _Yeah, exactly. The two of us got a vision about our other selves and our old self told us to go find them. We couldn't see our old self, but we heard it talk for a little bit. It sounded exactly like that horned thing by that tree._

 _I see. So what you are saying is that the horned creature we saw earlier could be our whole self. This Keeper of Realms, according to that Altaria. It certainly sounds about right. It would make sense that a supposed realm keeper would have the power to split itself into multiple Pokémon._

 _Yeah! Looks like we've figured out who we used to be! Alright, awesome! We finally figured out this huge mystery._

 _Except that we don't know why it made us in the first place._

As soon as Glace thought that, Sonata's jittery energy quieted down. A dark, heavy feeling settled over Glace, but another bite out of the Magikarp helped chase it away.

 _We also don't even know how we were able to see that thing when we're all split up. If it really is our old self, it shouldn't exist anymore. And yet we saw it talking to that Altaria._

 _Well… maybe it was a memory. I mean, you've heard those stories about how amnesic people get random memories about their life at random times. Maybe it's the same idea with us._

 _We're not amnesic; we just came into existence very differently than other Pokémon. I can remember my entire life fine, Yore can remember his life fine, and I imagine you can too._

 _Yeah, but that's just our_ fragment _lives. None of us remember anything about our old self. I'd count that as amnesia._

 _Fine, we'll count ourselves as amnesiacs then. That still doesn't explain why were all in the memory together. If it really was a memory, we should have been seeing it from that horned creature's perspective._

 _Well… um. We um… alright, you stumped me there. I got nothing there._

Glace really did want to believe Sonata when she theorized that they were this supposed Keeper of Realms. It made perfect sense to her that they would be god-like being who served as the guardian over all the different dimensions. She couldn't think of a better fit for who they could be, except perhaps Arceus himself. She would have thought Arceus would be the guardian of the dimensions, being the supposed grand creator of the universes, but she realized that maybe that had been a misconception. After all, Arceus had supposedly created Palkia and Dialga to craft time and space, concepts he could have made himself. It wasn't much of a stretch to believe that he would create another creature to maintain his creations.

If any of this was even true to begin with, that was. Glace wasn't entirely sure what she thought about existence and its formation anymore. Not long ago, she had thought that her dimension was the one and only universe in all of existence. She never would have guessed that just beyond an invisible veil, countless other universes filled with Pokémon lived right alongside her, oblivious to their true insignificance of the multiverse.

Regardless, she really could believe that this Keeper of Realms could very well be her old self. It was only unfortunate that she couldn't come up with an explanation for what had happened at that tree. Maybe their old self hadn't shattered completely and was still around in some form? Maybe they could talk to it if they could reach that tree again? She really did want to know why she had been created in the seemingly infinite realms of existence.

 _Maybe we were in our bodies because our minds haven't merged back together._

Glace stopped pondering. Even though Yore's words rang so quietly through her mind, they struck with the intensity of a lightning bolt.

 _What are you talking about?_

 _You might have assimilated our bodies, but our minds are still our own. I wonder if we all visited our old self in separate bodies because we aren't one yet. We're still fragments. We're not actually the keeper yet._

 _Ohhhhh! So you mean like when Glace passed out, we all got thrown into the memory. And then we watched like outsiders because we're not actually our whole self anymore. We're just like spectators._

 _Something like that, yes. I know it doesn't seem logically sound, but considering our circumstances, it seemed plausible to me._

 _Well it makes perfect sense to me! Trust me, I've heard way weirder stuff in my own dimension. Yours is pretty normal compared to all that._

Glace could feel a pleasant shudder course through her that made her smile just a bit. She even felt the need to wag a non-existent tail.

 _I can work with that explanation as well, Yore. For now, anyway. And who knows, maybe we'll see more memories and we'll be able to understand all of this better._

 _Of course. I, just like you, would also like to know why were split apart. However, knowing that we possibly were this Keeper of Realms does provide me some happiness at least._

 _Feel like I might have seen that thing from somewhere though. I feel like I might have heard about some legendary that had horns like that one now that I think about it. But I don't know. Everyone's got a different interpretation of what all the legendaries look like. Like, I've seen some people draw Arceus as a four-legged thing with this golden wheel around its body. And then some other people draw him with a thousand arms. That last interpretation is kind of stupid though._

Glace laughed a little at the idea of Arceus having multiple arms jutting out of his body. She couldn't quite imagine why anyone would think of him as that. It didn't sound very majestic or godly to her in any sort of way.

"Hey, we're at Palm Island now."

Glace stopped laughing and turned to her side. She found the Vigoroth standing not far from where she stood, all the while gesturing to something behind him. Glace followed his hand and soon saw that the boat was no longer drifting about the endless ocean. It now floated a ways from the shoreline of an island far larger than the one she had rested on. She couldn't see much of it at the moment, save for the palm trees here and there, but she thought she saw semblance of a city further into the island. She could also see the Vigoroth's companion tying the boat to a winding, wooden platform rising out of the water that connected to the island's shoreline. It seemed quite lengthy, as if it was designed to hold multiple of these supposed boats at the same time.

The Weavile pushed herself to her feet. She took one last bite out of the Magikarp in her claws, and then tossed it into the ocean. She heard it splash for a brief second over the sound of the rolling waves.

"So we are," Glace said simply.

"Hope that you enjoy being on the island," the Vigoroth said with a smile. "Are you sure you don't want to stay with us though? We can offer you a place to stay while we're here."

"No, it's fine. I'll be alright on my own. There are ways off this island if I don't want to stay any longer, correct?"

"Yeah, of course. Palm Island has merchants coming and going just about every day. I'm sure you could go on one of their boats, if you pay them that is."

"I see. Good to know."

The Weavile locked her gaze onto the platform right beside the boat. She could see how easy it would be to leap down onto it, even with the waves rocking the boat.

"Hey, I'm sorry if I offended you in any sort of way earlier with about your clan and all," the Vigoroth then said, prompting Glace to look back at him. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything."

Glace took in a deep breath. She knew she didn't have to respond in any sort of way. She could dismiss him entirely and be on her way now that she was so close to land again.

But she couldn't. Some part of her mind pestered her, telling her that she couldn't abandon this Vigoroth after he had helped her. And no matter how much she tried to ignore that insistent voice in her head, it wouldn't leave her be. It demanded that she show more consideration for her fellow Pokémon.

She briefly wondered why she had never had this nagging voice in her head until now after so many years.

"It's fine," she told him. "I overreacted. You couldn't have known it was a touchy subject for me."

"Ah, thanks," the Vigoroth said with a sigh. "It was really bothering me all day. I really wanted to say something to you, but I just didn't know how to say it and-"

"It's fine," Glace said again, this time more firmly. "I accept your apology. And… I appreciate you for bringing me to this island. I'm pretty sure I would have never found civilization again if you hadn't spotted me."

Glace could feel her heart thumping uncomfortably in her chest after saying that. She couldn't remember the last time she had expressed gratitude. It felt almost alien and wrong.

The Weavile quickly jumped off the boat and landed on the platform before the conversation could keep going. She heard the wood groan beneath her feet, but it didn't give beneath her weight. The Weavile breathed deeply before she righted herself up.

She wasted no time making her way toward the island even though her muscles felt stiff and tired.

She didn't look back at her two rescuers as she quietly left them behind, lest the unpleasant feeling wash over her once again.

* * *

When Glace found herself within the supposed town that she saw peeking from the foliage, twilight descended upon the island. However, unlike in Granite Town, the Pokémon of Palm Island didn't begin to close up their shops. Instead, they set up blazing torches outside of their huts and cauldrons filled with chopped up wood. They didn't quite have the intensity or even the range of the luminous orbs back in Glace's dimension, but they offered sufficient light to the vicinity. Glace could easily see all of the Pokémon still roaming about what she felt to be a marketplace of sorts. The stands were filled with exotic, colorful fruits Glace had never seen before and the many straw-woven items certainly gave her that impression. She even she saw several vendors at their shops enticing Pokémon to see their many necklaces and bracelets crafted out of seashells and teeth of the marine wildlife.

Glace couldn't help but stare at one particular stand holding yellow, star-shaped fruit. She had never would have imagined that fruit could naturally grow in that shape. She could tell that it hadn't been cut up or manipulated to be that way by the merchants; the skin seemed untouched. Quite a number of Pokémon swarmed around the stand and grabbed at least five of the odd fruit before bringing them to the presumed Feraligatr merchant looming close by. Glace noticed that all of the Pokémon would give him a number of small, black seashells before walking away with their purchase.

 _They use shells here as currency. Interesting._

 _Huh. That's pretty weird. I wonder how that works though. I mean, wouldn't the ocean always be bringing in a bunch of seashells? That'd make their whole currency system worthless._

 _It could be that these are a limited amount of these types of seashells. Or maybe they altered them so that they're not like ordinary shells._

 _Maybe. I dunno, using coins seems a lot easier to me. Nobody can replicate coins all that easily compared to shells. I mean, how are shells even valuable anyway? They're just things you get on the shore and use for decoration._

 _How are coins valuable when they're nothing but flat metal?_

… _Okay fine, you got a point there._

Glace felt tempted to stick around longer and take in more of the island and how much different it could possibly be from her own dimension. She imagined the shell currency was only scratching the surface. However, she knew couldn't. She needed to find Jera; that fragment was her priority above all else.

But before she could do that, she needed to find somewhere to rest for a while. Though she had done nothing but sit on that boat for hours and hours and watch the sea, it had still somehow worn her out. Her legs still ached and the Magikarp digesting in her belly filled her with a warm, lulling energy.

The question was, where could Glace possibly go? She realized now that she could have stayed with Matt and Rob. That Vigoroth had offered lodging to her, and yet she had rejected it. That had been a poor move on her part. Though she wasn't entirely on board with the idea of voluntarily sleeping anywhere near strangers, it was better than being out here on the island with nothing but sand and thin trees unfit for her to rest in. Who knew what lurked the island at night. She had no concept of how much an island could change when the sun set. She had no idea where she was supposed to hide when the night predators awoke and prowled about. She didn't even know what these predators could possibly even be, if there were any to begin with.

She couldn't sleep outside when she understood so little about the island. She had to go back to that Vigoroth and Slowking and ask to stay with them despite declining earlier. She had to admit that she had nowhere to go and needed shelter for a while. She felt an uncomfortable twisting in her stomach at the thought of that, but she knew what she had to do. She definitely she couldn't find an inn of any sorts when she didn't have this dimension's currency. She also most definitely couldn't sleep outside when paranoid thoughts of what dangers lurked in the darkness would bombard her at every waking moment.

She imagined it couldn't be that difficult to find the two sailors. They might both even be at the boat still, or close to it. Glace mustered up every bit of courage she could find within herself, and then headed back to the ocean.

After a while, Glace found herself back at the wooden platform, the two's boat still tied to one of the posts protruding out of the water. Much to her relief, Matt and Rob were both close by, sitting at the platform's edge with their feet dangling above the ocean surface. She could just barely make out their forms in the pale moonlight of the growing darkness.

Glace watched them from her distance, finding herself unable to move toward them.

 _Come on Glace, you know you gotta talk to them. You know you don't want to stay outside tonight._

 _I know._

 _So go on then! I know you can do it._

 _It feels wrong to go crawling back to them and ask to stay with them. Being near them while I sleep isn't something I'm not entirely comfortable with either._

 _Why not? Pokémon in my dimension sleep near total strangers all the time! It's totally normal._

 _In_ your _dimension, that is. Not in mine. We have boundaries where I come from._

 _Well you don't mind me and Yore being in here in your head, following you everywhere._

 _I don't have a choice with you two. I couldn't get rid of you two even if I wanted to._

 _Aw, don't say it like that, Glace. You're making it sound like you don't like us being with you._

 _She probably doesn't. I would hate to be bombarded by thoughts that aren't my own at random intervals._

 _But they are your thoughts! You know, just thoughts from a different version of yourself. With different memories and experiences and all that good stuff._

 _I don't think that quite helps your case, Sonata._

Glace listened to Yore and Sonata continue their prattle in her head, both holding their stances on the subject adamantly. It felt so strange hearing voices in her head talking amongst each other instead of to her. They really did feel like two separate entities inside of her this way. However, at the same time, Glace couldn't call the feeling foreign and unpleasant.

Somehow, the entire experience felt natural. It didn't make her head spin or send a splitting headache straight through her skull.

The Weavile would have pondered in the subject more, but it was then that she saw something near the boat. Something red and round sticking out of the water.

Glace frowned as she carefully crept over to a nearby palm tree and hid behind its slender trunk. She peered around it and locked her gaze back onto the strange object floating in the ocean. Sonata and Yore both stopped talking as they joined her. All three of them watched as the spherical object slowly drifted toward the beach. When it arrived at the shoreline and settled onto the sand, Glace finally saw it for it truly was.

It was an elderly Pokémon with pale red skin and eight tentacles, one of which seemed quite mangled.

The second Glace saw the tentacled Pokémon, the uncanny feeling of familiarity struck her deep in her core. It coursed through her, consuming her thoughts as her brain struggled to conjure up the memories of when she had met this Pokémon. And yet, no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't recall a single memory of this strange creature. There had never been any in the winterlands of her youth nor at the dojo.

Glace forced herself back into reality before her mind could take a full plunge into the darkest corners of her subconscious in its vain attempt to understand the mysterious feeling.

She watched as her other self took a moment to wriggle her tentacles through the sand before crawling toward the city. She moved far more quickly than Glace anticipated, especially considering her injured arm.

 _Well, looks like we found Jera. That was easier than finding Yore._

 _What exactly is she? I don't recognize her species._

 _She's an Octillery. They primarily live on the bottom of the ocean floor. However, I've seen a few of them pass into my city under the supposed reason that they tired of the ocean and wanted a chance to live on land. I never did see if their attempts went well._

 _That would explain it. Thanks, Yore. There's still something about Jera though that I don't quite understand though._

 _What would that be?_

 _How is she so much older than all of us? I thought that we were all made at the same time. If she really was us, she would be our age._

 _Huh, I didn't actually consider that._

 _Well… maybe time passes differently in this dimension than in our dimensions! I mean, all of us aren't exactly the same age._

 _We're not? You seem to be my age, Sonata._

 _Nope! I'm thirty-five. And you're like twenty something from what I can tell, right Glace?_

 _Yeah._

 _Yeah! See, we're not the same age! And Yore here is… uhhhh…_

 _Twenties or thirties as well. I can no longer remember the exact number anymore._

 _There you go, we're all different ages. So it really shouldn't be a surprise that Jera is apparently like in her eighties or nineties or whatever she is. Now let's go after her before we lose sight of her._

Glace wasted no time in going after the elderly fragment. Though she was quite tempted to reveal herself and approach Jera completely unguarded, she resisted the idea. She had already made that mistake with Yore; she needed to find the perfect time to approach the fragment. She needed to maintain her distance for now, all the while keeping her within her sights.

With the cunning and silence of a hunter, Glace hid in the shadows of the foliage of the jungle and trailed the Octillery. Much to Glace's surprise, Jera did the same, always keeping close to the trees as if also hiding from someone, but not with the same masterfulness as Glace. Her stealth was somewhat awkward and cumbersome, her tentacles sometimes peering out of the plants too much or her head not sunk low enough to the ground. However, this was understandable, considering that Octillery were never meant to creep through the land undetected. Glace was honestly impressed that she could sneak through the island with the grace that she had conjured up.

It was fully night by the time Glace followed Jera into a neighborhood deep into the island, quite far away from the market Glace had visited earlier. She could now see the Octillery slinking out of the foliage and toward the houses, moving all the more swiftly as she hurried into the huts' shadows. Glace stayed crouched low to the ground as the Octillery crept around the hut's exterior and peered inside through a window. She noticed that no light emitted from the house, only lulling darkness.

 _What is Jera doing?_

 _Something that she's not supposed to be doing obviously. Nobody moves around like her and not be up to something sneaky._

The Octillery snaked a few tentacles into the window. Then, with one motion, she pulled herself into the hut and disappeared out of Glace's sight. The Weavile couldn't help but grimace at the sight.

 _I don't like where this is going._

 _Me neither. But it's not like we can just barge into that house and stop her. Pretty sure we'll make a ton of noise and wake up anyone that might be around here._

Glace felt an uncomfortable shiver go down her spine. She flexed her claws and adjusted her posture as the feeling swept over her and left just as quickly as it came.

 _Hey Sonata._

 _Yeah, Glace?_

 _I know you told me you only have vague knowledge of who our other selves are, but do you know if any of them were dangerous? As in are any of them criminals or violent?_

 _Uhhhh, well. I know who you were Glace. I knew a lot about you. Everyone else though… not so much. I just know their names and species. I really couldn't tell you anything else._

 _So you can't tell me if Jera might hurt me if I were to catch her doing whatever it is she's doing now._

 _No, I can't… Sorry._

 _Is there anything you can tell me about her? You too, Yore; do any of you know anything that might help me if there's scuffle?_

 _I'm familiar with her species despite not seeing it often. They have very strong heads. They can easily give you a concussion if they hit you with them. Their suckers are also very strong, so if you're ever ensnared by their tentacles, there's no hope of escaping. I imagine it would be very easy for her to drown you if you don't cut off her tentacles. Even then, the tentacles have this uncanny ability to act on their own even when not connected to a body. They might just keep strangling you and drag you into the ocean for Jera._

 _Great._

 _I don't think Octillery are very hostile Pokémon however. If I remember right, they're more inclined to blind you with ink and then run away than fight. The fact that Jera has been sneaking about in the dark, as though she dreads the very light, further assures me._

 _I'm hoping that's true, Yore. I don't think I would fare well against an Octillery. I've never fought anything that had more than four limbs._

 _Oh, well I can tell you how you could do that! I've faced a bunch of bugs that had a lot of legs, like a Galvantula. Creepy thing too. Get even one little strand of webbing on you and you get zapped with a thousand volts of electricity! So what you gotta do to deal with Pokémon like that is-_

" _GET AWAY FROM HER, YOU SPAWN OF GIRATINA!"_

A loud crashing sound came from inside the hut Jera had crawled into. Glace snapped her gaze to the house as she watched a bright light flicker into existence and chase away the darkness that once occupied the home.

Seconds later, Jera burst out the window, carrying something in two of her front arms. Glace couldn't identify what it was, only that it was quite small and a soft blue color. She watched the Octillery scurry away from the house as two Quagsire bolted out the front door with venomous, hateful glares that could surely melt steel.

" _EVERYONE, GET UP!"_ one of them screamed with startling ravenousness. _"THE NIGHTCRAWLER CAME BACK! THE ONE THAT TOOK LAPIS!"_

Pokémon poured out of every single hut in the neighborhood. Particularly, the adults. There were a few hatchlings here and there, but the adults held onto them with iron grips, as if these hatchlings were their very life force.

" _GET HER!"_

Every Pokémon not holding a hatchling rushed after Jera, roaring and howling like wild, savage ferals on the hunt. The Octillery crawled all the more vigorously, hurrying out of the neighborhood and toward the ocean. She dragged herself along quite swiftly, but Glace knew it wouldn't be enough to outrun the oncoming mob. Having three tentacles out of commission wasn't helping matters either. Glace imagined that Jera would just touch the shoreline when the horde would catch up to her and drag her away. She didn't know what would happen after that point, but she knew it wouldn't end well for Jera.

Glace knew what to do. She knew the second the mob began their mad pursuit. She knew how questionable it was and how she didn't actually understand anything about the situation.

But there was no other choice if she wanted Jera to merge back with her; only her former self's instructions mattered in the grand scheme of everything.

The Weavile shot out of the foliage just as the crowd was to dart past her. She extended her claws as she ran past the front of the crowd and slashed every Pokémon's knee in her path. She felt her claws rip out flesh and blood as harsh screams pierced the air. She tensed as the noise dug into her ears, but she forced herself to ignore it until she gouged a Raichu's leg, the farthest Pokémon to the right of the crowd. She leapt into a cluster of trees as soon as soon as she finished. She imagined the entire assault had lasted about five seconds.

She watched from her cover as all of the Pokémon at the frontline abruptly came to a stop as they grabbed at their knees or tripped over their own feet. The Pokémon so close behind them couldn't stop themselves as they crashed into the downed Pokémon. Sand flew up into the air as dozens of wriggling bodies collapsed into the sand and vainly tried to right themselves up. Multiple tails and paws lashed through the air as they tried to crawl over one another before being shoved back down to the ground by another dazed Pokémon close by.

"My knee! What happened to it?! Where did these claw marks come from?!"

"Gah, they hurt! I think it cut my muscle!"

"Who did this?! Who attacked everyone?!"

"I saw something black and red! Then before I could even feel anything, it hits Lyra and spills her blood!"

"It got everyone that fast?! But how? One second we were all standing, and then the next second…"

Glace twisted her head away from the downed crowd and toward where she last saw the Octillery. She could just barely still see her vague red form in the distance, mere moments away from the beach. Glace hurried out of the foliage and raced after her. It didn't take long to catch up to her. When the Weavile did, she found Jera already retreating into the rolling waves. In a few more seconds she would submerge and be completely out of sight.

"Jera, wait!" Glace cried out. "Stop!"

The Octillery froze on the spot just as Glace reached the shoreline and felt the waves tickle her feet. She caught her breath as Jera slowly turned around and faced her.

Glace saw the familiar flicker or recognition in Jera's eyes the moment they locked gazes. The Octillery tilted her head to her side as her brain undoubtedly searched for any semblance of Glace anywhere in her memories. Glace could practically see the Octillery's mind churning trying to understand how she could have known a supposedly extinct species.

Glace was just about to saw something, when she finally saw movement in Jera's tentacles. The Weavile looked down at the two front tentacles and quickly realized what they held gingerly yet firmly in their grasp.

It was a little Wooper, sound asleep despite all the commotion.

The Weavile felt her heart stop as the realization of the entire situation dawned upon her. Suddenly the blood on her claws felt very cold and poisonous. She could practically feel something sharp piercing into her palms.

"I… I helped you take this Wooper," Glace realized in a frail voice. "I hurt all those Pokémon to help you take this Wooper…"

She had anticipated that Jera had been doing something questionable; there would be no other reason the mob would be pursuing her. But Glace never would have imagined that it had been _kidnapping_ an actual hatchling straight from someone's home…

Exactly what kind of Pokémon could Jera possibly be to be capable of that?

It was then that Glace heard muffled voices behind her. She hesitantly looked over her shoulder to see the mob steadily storming the beach. She felt that there were more Pokémon this time than before somehow. Glace found she couldn't move as they flooded toward her with ravenous intent.

How could she when had willingly helped Jera with her scheme?

"It's alright, my child. They won't be able to reach you. It's my turn to save you from them now."

Glace felt something hard and wet hit her in the back of her head. The Weavile snapped her head back at Jera to see water dribbling out of her mouth and into the ocean. Glace wanted to question this, but instead felt something stretching and widening behind her ears. The Weavile hissed as she grabbed at the site with her claws, but it wouldn't stop the pain.

"What did you…" Glace started to say.

It was then that she saw all of her fur turn blue. It ate away at the black, erasing it completely as the new color consumed every part of her. Glace gasped as she shook her arms, somehow thinking it would rid herself of the color, but nothing happened. The color only continued to corrupt her. Not only that, but it lulled her. It forced a heavy weight down on Glace's mind and made thinking all the more difficult. The sand beneath her feet seemed to shift as darkness clouded into her vision.

Something clammy wrapped around Glace's wrist.

"It's alright, my child," what sounded like Jera's voice said softly. "You've had this happen before. It only feels uncomfortable for a moment or two. Now come along, we need to hurry out of here. We can talk more when we're back at the cavern."

Then, before Glace could process what was happening, something tugged her forward.

She just barely saw herself disappear into the rolling waves before she blacked out.


	7. Safe and Sound

The first thing Glace noticed when she came to was that the sun wasn't beating down on her.

When she opened her eyes, there was no blinding light or black sky to greet her. Only a ceiling of dark stone stared right back at her. It reminded her too much of what sometimes greeted her during particular mornings whenever her clan was in the mountains.

For just a moment, Glace actually thought she was with them again. She thought that it was morning and that soon, she would be called off to go hunting. That, or she'd go train with the others who had potential to be effective hunters. Because even after you became a Weavile, you didn't stop training. You only learned more advanced techniques, like how to wear out large, dangerous prey by striking at its vulnerable spots with your claws. You'd strike once, then retreat, then strike again when you got a chance, and repeat until you could effectively kill your target. When the leaders felt you were ready, they'd let you go on the hunts that lasted for days and days at a time. If they really admired your prowess, they would let you lead the egg hunts of the Sneasel. Then, if you proved your worth with the Sneasel, you could be head of the Weavile hunts.

Her leaders said they did this because being in charge was completely different from being a follower. They had said they let you go on the hunts as a follower to help you understand how your comrades felt and what to anticipate in the Weavile hunts altogether. They then let you command the Sneasel as practice to see how you actually fared as a leader.

So when Glace sat up, she honestly expected to see other Weavile near the mouth of the cave. But she didn't see that. She only saw more cave wall surrounding her and piles of wet, pulpy plants scattered throughout the vicinity. As soon as she saw that, she finally remembered she was no longer a clan member. She hadn't been for years.

Glace didn't know why she had been so stupid to think she could have been back with her kind. Why had she ever thought that? What sort of idiot believed that the second they saw a cave ceiling?

The Weavile mulled in her self-deprecating thoughts for a second longer, and then looked down at her claws. She found that her fur was no longer dyed that unsettling blue color. She no longer felt that uncomfortable stretching sensation behind her ears as well. She checked over herself for a few moments longer, and then brought her gaze back to the cave room. She eyed the makeshift beds, including the large, purple shell at the far end of the chamber, but saw no one slumbering inside of them. She was completely alone in his strange cavern.

 _Jera abducted me. She took me with her into the ocean. But where did she take me?_

 _Well it's a cave, obviously. I see some water trails all over the place, so I get the feeling that this is some underwater cave._

 _She did mention something about a cavern now that I think about it. That was the last thing she said before I passed out. She really did take me to it… along with that Wooper._

It was with this thought that Glace remember she hadn't been the only one Jera had abducted. The Octillery had been holding onto a child as well, someone she had ripped straight out of someone's home just minutes prior. The mere thought of that still left Glace with an awful, rotten feeling in her chest.

 _Well we don't know if she actually abducted that Wooper. I mean… maybe this is all a huge misunderstanding._

 _Those Quagsire were chasing us, along with all those other Pokémon. They said that Jera took someone before._

 _Well um… maybe there was a good reason? Maybe those Pokémon all abducted that Wooper and Jera was just taking her back?_

 _You don't actually believe that, Sonata. I know you don't. You might act like a hatchling sometimes, but you're not stupid._

 _Well! Yore, what do you think of all of this? You haven't given your opinion on this whole thing._

 _I don't have an opinion on the matter. I'm having a difficult time understanding it still. Part of me believes that this didn't actually happen._

 _Oh, well that's no help at all. Augh, well I don't know. I just don't think any of our other selves are evil or are even capable of doing bad things like abducting hatchlings, okay? Because we've met our old self. Or seen it anyway. It seemed like a good Pokémon or whatever it was. It had to be if it was some sort of realm keeper. So if we're all it, then there's no reason to think that any of us would turn evil._

Glace wondered if Sonata had a point. A godly being such as their whole self had to have been a benevolent being. It couldn't have been anything else if it were the supposed guardian over all the universes. If Glace and her other selves all really were it, then all of them should have been good-hearted Pokémon that meant well to everyone. Hypothetically there should have been no evil within their old self's heart to spread to its fragmented selves.

" _All those Sneasel could have died because of you, Glace. You let this happen because you didn't listen when Éclair told you he wasn't comfortable stealing eggs. You didn't listen when Verglas said his leg hurt. You didn't listen when Noir said she had never climbed a tree that high before. You didn't listen to any of them. There were countless others you refused to listen to on other hunts as well from what I've heard."_

" _I know I taught you to be empathetic with your comrades. I told you that you can't make decisions without considering them. I told you that you can't be selfish and that everything is your fault when you're the leader, no matter what happens."_

" _I'm sorry, but I can't let you keep doing this. No one in this clan can. It's only a matter of time before you actually do kill someone."_

Glace closed her eyes as the words echoed in her mind. None of the fragments could be evil. That's what Sonata said. They were all good Pokémon. They were all kind and virtuous Pokémon who could only want to help others.

They could never hurt anyone.

The Weavile smiled bitterly at that ludicrous thought. She almost wanted to laugh at it.

"Hey! The Weevil is awake! The Weevil is awake!"

Glace turned toward the source of the sound to find quite a surprise in store for her. There, standing at the entrance of a tunnel that led out of the chamber, were a small group of Pokémon. All of them were hatchlings from what Glace could tell, water-types especially.

And every single one of them was racing toward her as they laughed giddily.

She barely had time to get to her feet before the hatchlings swarmed her. They encircled her like a pack of Mightyena and closed tightly around her. They grew so near that Glace barely had any breathing room. She tried not to tense up or lash out as the hatchlings eyed her with wonderment and zeal.

"Hi there, Weevil!" a Totodile said. "You're a lot bigger than I thought you were going to be! You're almost as tall as Papa Ludo!"

" _Weavile_. I'm a Weavile," Glace corrected. "Who's Ludo?"

"Ludo helps take care of us," the Totodile answered. "Just like Mama Jera and Mama Serenity and Mama Serene and Mama Anemone and-"

"Mama Jera said that you're one of her kids all grown up!" a Squirtle then cut in. "She said that you got big and then you left. What's it like being big? Does it hurt?"

"Big as in evolving or as in becoming an adult?" Glace asked.

"Uhhhhh evolving! But growing up too!"

"It didn't hurt when I evolved. It felt-"

"Weevil, why did you leave Mama Jera? Why didn't you stay here?" an Eevee then asked.

"I didn't-"

"Weevil, why do you have feathers on your head? Can you fly like those Wingull?"

"No, I don't know why-"

"Weevil, your claws look really sharp! Are they sharp like Sharkedo teeth?"

"Weevil, what was Mama Jera like when you were here? Did she used to read you stories too before you went to sleep?"

"Weevil, how did you leave? You're not a water-type!"

"Weevil, I feel all cold! Are you doing that?"

"Weevil, why do you have that yellow thing on your forehead? Is it a rock?"

The hatchlings only continued to bombard Glace with question after question, never once allowing her even a fraction of a second to respond. Glace could feel each of their questions physically hurt her, as if each question was a nail slowly being driven into her body. She could sense the faintest hint of a migraine crawling over her mind with a pulsing sensation.

"Now children, don't bother our guest too much. I'm sure she's still tired from the trip."

All of the hatchlings halted their questions just before the migraine could seize Glace's mind. All of them turned away from her as they looked toward the chamber's exit with giddy giggles. Glace followed their gazes as her erratic thoughts settled.

There, crawling towards her and the hatchlings, was Jera. And much like the last time Glace saw her, the Octillery wasn't alone. A beaming Scraggy walked right alongside her as he held the end of one of her tentacles, humming a little tune to himself as he wagged his tail back and forth rhythmically. Trailing right behind her was the little Wooper that Glace had seen on the island. The Weavile couldn't help but notice that the Wooper would periodically peer over Jera's head with an uncomfortable frown before hastily ducking back behind the Octillery.

Glace tensed as the Octillery stopped a few feet before her. Though she tried to keep a stoic face, Glace couldn't stop herself from frowning grimly. She could still remember Jera taking that slumbering Wooper out of her home before dragging her to wherever they were now. The very thought of that made Glace's skin crawl. The fact that all of the hatchlings surrounding Glace now beamed at the Octillery didn't help matters.

"Apologies about the children," Jera told Glace. "They have a difficult time understanding how others feel. I hope they didn't bother you too much."

"No… they were fine," Glace said quietly as she crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm fine."

"Good. I was hoping that the trip didn't drain too much out of you. Adults sometimes don't react too well to my soak ability."

"I don't understand what you're saying."

"That's how Mama Jera gets everyone here to the cavern!" the Froakie chimed in before Jera could react. "She shoots you with this water out of her mouth, and then you turn into a water-type!"

Glace felt behind her ears with her claws with a grim frown. So that stretching pain had been gills forming. Jera had actually altered Glace's biology and given her gills for a temporary time. Glace didn't know how she wanted to respond to that sort of revelation. It almost seemed too bizarre to be real.

"Children, do you think that you can give our guest and I some time alone?" Jera then asked as she looked down at the little ones.

"Awwwwww! But I wanna ask the Weevil more!" the Eevee whined.

"I wanna see her more too!"

"Me too!"

"Me three!"

"Now now, you can speak to her again soon, I promise," Jera said softly. "I only want to talk to her alone for a few minutes. After that, you can see her again. So run along now. Go see Anemone and Serenity and all of your other caretakers."

"Okay, Mama Jera!"

And with that, all of the hatchlings left Glace behind as they hurried out of the cavern. Even the little Scraggy standing so close to Jera's side ran away with the others without a second's delay. The only one who didn't leave was the little Wooper, who still continued to shirk behind the Octillery's tentacles. Jera turned her head toward the little one and gently brushed an arm over her head.

"Now now dear, run along with your brothers and sisters," Jera told her. "I promise I'll be right back."

"I wanna stay here with you," the Wooper said in a meek voice. "I don't wanna be with my brothers and sisters."

"Now Aqua…"

"It's fine," Glace cut in, causing Jera to bring her gaze back to the Weavile. "She can stay here. I don't mind her being here."

"Are you sure?" Jera asked. "It would be no issue. Aqua is only being this way because she's a bit shy around her brothers and sisters. She's only been here for not even a day."

"I'm sure."

Glace eyed the Wooper. She did seem quite timid with how she couldn't even hold a gaze with Glace and could only glance at the ground. Glace even thought she saw her body trembling a tiny bit. She couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor girl.

And yet, Glace wondered why this Wooper seemed so attached to Jera when she had been abducted by the Octillery. She knew that she had been stolen, didn't she? She had parents; Glace had seen them chasing after Jera. This Wooper seemed old enough to comprehend who her parents were and that those other Pokémon were not her siblings. Had Jera told Aqua something or maybe done something to her that could be making her act this way?

"I'm glad that I'm able to see you again, my child," Jera then said. "And I really do want to thank you for helping me rescuing Aqua. I hadn't anticipated that the entire neighborhood would react that way. I had thought they had forgotten about my last visit there. If not for you, I'm sure I would have died."

The Octillery twisted some of her tentacles along the ground in an awkward manner.

"My sincerest apologies, but for the life of me I can't recall who you are," she then said. "Do you think you could tell me? I really am sorry that I have to ask. I never forget any of my children's names or their circumstances but yours… ah, I cannot remember."

 _Oh wow, she wasn't pretending at all. She actually does think that we're one of her "children"… whatever that means._

 _I might as well use this to my advantage. I'm not going to make the same mistake I made last time. I need Jera to trust me before I tell her everything._

 _Do you even know what it means to be one of her children though, Glace? You can't pretend to be one of them if you don't understand the situation._

 _I have a good idea of what it means. If not, I'm sure I can word my responses in a way that will give me more information about everything._

"My name is Glace," the Weavile said. "You found me twenty years ago on Palm Island. You used to tell me that you found me very strange because you thought my kind were extinct. You didn't even know what I was until I told you."

"Right, that does sound familiar," Jera said with a slow nod. "And I believe that your parents weren't of your species?"

"Yeah. They were both Floatzel. They claimed to have found my egg while they were out in some jungle on some other island."

"I see. However… I don't think what you're saying is true."

Glace resisted grimacing.

"It's not?" Glace asked, feigning ignorance.

"No," Jera said softly with a shake of her head. "Because you see Glace, two Floatzel could have never just found a Sneasel egg in the middle of a jungle. How would they come across your egg if your species is so rare in the first place?"

"Oh. I guess that makes sense."

"Exactly. How could that happen? What you says doesn't have any semblance of sense."

All of the puzzlement in Jera's eyes vanished as something else then glimmered in its place.

"Ahh. That's right, I remember now," Jera then said in a pleased tone. "I spied on those Floatzel and discovered that they stole you from a remote island where others of your kind lived in secrecy. And I took you away from them because they'd lock you in a bedroom all day long. They were planning on selling you away due to your rarity…"

Glace gazed more deeply at Jera. She recognized that glimmer in the Octillery's eyes now; that was the look someone got when they recalled memories they had long forgotten or reached an epiphany of sorts. It didn't take Glace long to understand what was happening right before her.

Jera actually believed that Glace was part of a smuggling scheme. She had just created an entire fabricated history of Glace using the Weavile's vague information and believed every word of it.

The very realization of that nearly broke Glace's façade, but she knew she couldn't shatter the illusion. She had to keep this lie up. She had to gain Jera's trust.

"Looks like you remember me after all," Glace forced herself to say with a smile as she buried the perplexed thoughts away. "I'm glad."

"I'm sorry; it's absolutely mortifying to think that I had almost forgotten about one of my children," Jera admittedly. "Ah, I still have a difficult time believing I completely forgot all about you. I should have remembered you of all Pokémon with your species being supposedly extinct."

"Don't worry about it. You have many hatchlings, so it can be easy to forget about some of them. Especially when one of them leaves for so long."

"Yes, you've been gone for what seems to be a lifetime now. How long has it been since I cared for you?"

"I think it's been about ten years. I've been well though, in case you were wondering. I'm the huntress for the butcher on Palm Island and it's been providing me well. No one seems to mind that I'm a Weavile. No one's certainly like my parents."

"Ah good, good. I had hoped that you had adapted well to island life after growing up here. I really did worry that the islanders would ostracize you or something far worse because of your species. I'm very happy that didn't happen. Of course, you're always welcome back here if you ever need to, Glace. That's what Serenity did; she couldn't handle island life, so she stayed here and helps the rest of us caretakers with the children."

"Serenity?"

"Ah right. Of course, she came to live here after you left. Here, let me introduce you to her. Maybe you can say hello to the others as well if they're not terribly busy. So come along, follow me."

The Octillery then crawled toward the exit of the cavern with the little Wooper trailing not far behind her. Glace wasted no time in following after the two. As they made their way out of the spacious room, Glace reflected in the uncanny conversation. She still couldn't quite get over what had just happened. The Octillery had created so many false memories so easily, all quite vivid from how the Weavile saw it. Glace never would have thought she could actually alter someone's entire perception of another creature with so little information. She only had to give a few details, and then Jera filled in the rest. Glace had thought doing this would do nothing more than keep Jera's focus away from how they actually knew each other. She didn't think it would actually create false memories.

She wondered if that technique could work on the other fragments. It was wrong, the thought made Glace's skin crawl, but it seemed effective with getting the fragments to trust her. Maybe if she could alter their memories so that they thought they had a past together, the assimilation process could go much more smoothly than it did with Yore. At least, she hoped it would.

Sometime later, the three found themselves standing before a body of water. It was completely surrounded by cave walls, making it resemble a shallow pool of sorts. Resting at the sandy bottom were many colorful, vibrant objects that Glace couldn't quite recognize. She couldn't distinguish their shape much, though she imagined they were rocks with how they refused to move in the current.

But what held Glace's attention the most was that all of the children she had seen earlier were in this little pool. The water-types all lingered far below the surface, swimming around and chasing one another around the strange rocks. All of the other Pokémon either paddled along the surface or sat near the water's edge. They all smiled and laughed as they all played together without a care in the world.

With all of these hatchlings there was only one adult. It was slender, elegant Pokémon with pearls holding together her flowing hair. She drifted around the pool with the grace of a true marine Pokémon, as though she were one with the water. She would keep a close eye on each and every one of the hatchlings as she swam in endless circles in the water. And yet, she didn't seem the least bit stressed at having to watch so many hatchlings at once. She always wore a beaming, content smile as all of the little ones played around her.

 _That must be Serenity. I can see why she didn't feel she could live on land now._

 _It's manageable for Primarina. I believe I saw one enter Lilac City. I believe he said something about wanting to make a living as an entertainer of sorts using his voice and water balloons._

 _I still don't think I would live on land if I grew up without legs. I can't imagine a life where you can't run._

"Ah Serenity, I was hoping that I would find you here," Jera the said.

Glace brought her focus back to the Primarina to see that she had stopped swimming about. As soon as she saw Jera, her gaze seemed to brighten as she hurried over to the Octillery. The hatchlings, for once, didn't seem to pay Jera any mind and continued their games or lounging by the water.

"Hello Jera," Serenity said with a smile as she stopped at the pool's edge. "Sorry that I'm a little occupied at the moment. All of the children wanted to go swimming and the others were too busy to supervise them."

"It's quite alright, the children never bother me."

"They never have."

Serenity then glanced over at Glace. Her cheery expression faded a small amount as she stared at the Weavile. Glace couldn't help but think that she saw a dark glint in the Primarina's eyes.

"Oh, you have new company with you today," she stated. "I'm surprised; you never bring anyone down here that isn't a child."

"In a way, that's still true. Glace here is one of my grown children," Jera said. "She left the cavern before I ever brought you here. She's only here after an incident the two of us had at Palm Island. She's the very reason I'm alive today and was able to rescue poor Aqua right here from her tyrannical family."

"Oh dear."

Any traces of that dark emotion Glace saw earlier vanished as Serenity pressed both of her flippers together.

"Well Glace. I must say that I'm very happy that you saved Jera," she said in an honest tone. "I can't express my gratitude enough. She means everything to me and all of these little ones. We owe all our happiness to her, as I'm sure you know yourself. I don't know what we'd do without her."

Jera laughed bashfully as she shifted her tentacles along the ground. Glace had to resist shooting the Primarina a puzzled glare as her sincere appreciations muddled her thoughts. What exactly did she mean that they all owed Jera their happiness?

"You're welcome," Glace decided to say. "When I saw her being chased by all of those Pokémon, I knew I had to do something. I couldn't let them kill her."

"You have the entire cavern's thanks," Serenity said warmly. "Feel free to stay here as long as you wish. Don't be afraid to ask for anything; this is your home, no matter how old you are."

"I will," Glace said with a nod.

"Now then, Jera," Serenity then said as she brought her gaze back to the Octillery. "What happened to you with Aqua? Are you feeling alright?"

"Remember the incident I told you about with Lapis? Aqua was from Lapis's very same island. Apparently none of the adults have forgotten about what happened. So the moment I went inside the hut to save Aqua-"

Glace glanced over at the little Wooper behind Jera. She hid herself in the Octillery's tentacles quite well, making it almost impossible for the Weavile to spot her. But though she hid well, Glace could see the expression on her face clear enough. She seemed to smiling, as if content to remain wrapped up in Jera's company. Even though she could clearly hear Jera talking about how she had abducted her from her home, she didn't seem the least concerned.

The sight didn't baffle Glace now as she passively listened to the conversation happening before her. Everything was slowly starting to come together. Glace was beginning to understand just who Jera really was and why she had abducted that Wooper. But to know for certain, Glace needed more information. She couldn't make judgements just yet.

Glace watched Jera and Serenity talk for a moment longer and then made her way toward the nearest hatchling in the vicinity. That hatchling happened to be the little Eevee she had seen earlier, who sat all alone by the pool. She was gazing down at its glistening surface, all the while keeping one of her paws submerged in the watery depths. She stared at it so intensely that Glace was sure she was trying to make her reflection catch fire. She didn't even seem to notice Glace as she took a seat right beside the Eevee.

"What are you doing there?" Glace asked.

"I'm trying to become the water," the Eevee responded, refusing to take her eyes off the pool. "I heard that Vaporeon can become water. They touch the water and then poof! They're water."

"But you're not a Vaporeon," Glace stated blandly. "You're still an Eevee. You can't actually do any of that until you become a Vaporeon."

"But I'm already a Vaporeon! On the inside! I just need a rock and then I'll be one on the outside too!"

"Doesn't work that way. You have to be a Vaporeon on the outside to become water. You're just going to have to find yourself that rock you're talking about."

"Awww!"

The Eevee withdrew her paw from the water. Then, with a loud snort, she shot the water a hard frown and sunk her head low to the rocky ground. Glace imagined she was trying to appear intimidating, but to her, she only looked about as threatening as a Furret.

"Why do you want to be a Vaporeon anyway?" Glace asked. "I understand that there's so much ocean, but that doesn't mean you can't be an Umbreon or something like that. I heard Eevee who turn into Umbreon say it makes them feel invincible."

"Nuh-uh, that's a lie," the Eevee said with a shake of her head. "Vaporeon are the best. They can go wherever they want. They don't need Mama Jera or Mama Anemone to take them anywhere. They can go anywhere all by themselves. I want to be a Vaporeon and nothing else! Mama Jera told me if anyone tries to make me change my mind, I should get away from them."

"I'm not trying to change your mind, don't worry. If you want to be a Vaporeon, that's fine by me. You're in charge of your own decisions."

"Good! Because I like you. I don't want to leave you like mommy and daddy."

There it was. That was what Glace had been looking for. She had anticipated it would take longer to reach this point, but she had a way into this Eevee's past now. That was all that mattered.

"What do you mean you had to leave… mommy and daddy?" Glace asked, the childish words stalling her voice.

"Mommy and daddy always told me what to do and what to be. Made me eat food I hated and what I was going to do every day. And they got mad if I didn't listen," the Eevee answered, her cheerful tone not broken by the solemnness of the subject. "Like one time mommy found out I ate like two slices of this greenberry and coconut pie. She said it was bad for me. So she made me throw it all up.

"And then another time daddy found out I was going swimming in the ocean when he told me to stay away. So he locked me inside my room for like two days! I don't think I ate during that time. I don't really remember anymore. But what mommy and daddy really didn't like was me wanting to be a Vaporeon. They wanted me to be an Espeon. They said I was going to be a psychic and be beautiful and get them rich. They said everybody's a fish, so I shouldn't try to be one of them. I should try to be better than everyone else. Fish like psychics and pay money to know their futures. Or something."

"But you're here now. You're not with them anymore."

"Nope! Mama Jera found me one night when mommy and daddy weren't home. She brought me here and then said now that I was here, I could be a Vaporeon. She said that I didn't have to listen to what anyone told me anymore. I jumped when she told me that! And now I've been here for uhhhhhhhhhhhhh two years I think! And nobody can make an Espeon! I can be a Vaporeon as soon as I find my rock!"

The little Eevee finished talking, that innocent smile still present on her face. She didn't seem to realize the horrifying implications of everything she had just said. Glace couldn't help but stare at her in disbelief. She hadn't anticipated the Eevee to have such a disturbing childhood, yet seem completely unaffected by all that had happened.

"Well, I'm glad that Jera found you," Glace managed to say after a while. "I hope that you find that rock you want. I'm sure you'd make a wonderful Vaporeon."

"Thanks!"

"I'm going to get going now. I wanted to go talk to your other brothers and sisters."

"Awww, but I wanna talk to you more!"

"I know you do, but I need to go. Why don't you try turning into water again? Maybe you can actually do it without being a Vaporeon."

"Okay!"

And then just like that, the Eevee stuck her paw back into the pool and gave it a determined glare. Glace got back to her feet, and then after dusting herself off, headed for the next hatchling she could spot. It turned out to be a star-shaped Pokémon, who surprisingly didn't seem interested in swimming. He only rested against a rock near the wall, completely motionless. Glace couldn't tell if he was sleeping or simply daydreaming, given his lack of a face.

 _Another Pokémon I don't recognize. Sea Pokémon are very strange when it comes to their appearance. This dimension might as well be an alien planet._

 _Oh! I know this one! That's a Staryu. I've seen a couple of them before. Some people at my guild liked to eat them. I never got why since they never look all that tasty, but you know, some people…_

 _Staryu. What a brilliant name. I want to know who came up with that species name._

 _Well it's better than Luvdisc._

 _That's an actual species name?_

 _Yeah…_

 _I can attest to this as well. I've seen them on menus at some restaurants in my hometown. They're silly little Pokémon too. They look like hearts and I heard that they're extremely affectionate with one another. From the descriptions I hear, watching them interact with each other can be… revolting._

 _Hah. What a stupid Pokémon._

When Glace was only a few steps away from the Staryu, the red jewel in the center of his body flickered. Glace didn't know what that meant, but she didn't let it intimidate her as she stopped before the Staryu. She didn't bother sitting down this time. He seemed to be a much older Pokémon, possibly even an adolescent. There was no reason to treat him like a hatchling if that was true. She knew how much she hated being treated as a hatchling in her own adolescence.

"So, you're the oldest one of Jera's hatchlings, are you?" Glace asked nonchalantly.

The Staryu didn't say anything in return, instead flickering his gem with that red light a few times. Glace frowned a little.

"No, that's not right; _I'm_ the oldest hatchling here," Glace corrected. "I'm twenty-three. I imagine that you're nine? Or maybe thirteen? I have a hard time telling with those that aren't Sneasel or Weavile."

The Staryu silently flashed his jewel light again. Glace frowned harder at him. It seemed he really was an adolescent after all; only someone his age could possibly be giving her this sort of attitude.

"I'm trying to talk to you," Glace said in an icy tone. "I'd appreciate it if you'd say something."

The Staryu wriggled all of his appendages aggressively before standing up on two of them. He awkwardly waddled away from Glace and headed for the pool. Glace growled under her breath as she went after him. It didn't take her very long to catch up with him, given she was actually meant to walk on land.

"Hey!" she cried.

The Staryu swiveled part of his body around at the Weavile. His core glimmered once again, though now with a darker shade of red that resembled blood. Seconds later, a Marill scurried out of the pool and scampered toward the Staryu.

"Awww Topaz, you ruined my race with Marsh!" the Marill whined as he stopped by the Staryu's side. "I was like one second away from winning! Why did you have to call me up here?"

The Staryu's core flickered with light once again, now back to its softer shade. Each time the Staryu's light glinted, the scowl on the Marill's face slowly faded away until only solemnness remained.

"Oh, I get it. I'm sorry that I yelled at you," the Marill said as he fiddled with his paws. "I didn't realize what was going on. I'll help you out. You don't have to worry about anything anymore."

"What are you talking about?" Glace cut in, still fuming. "What's going on?"

"Topaz here is a little different from the rest of us," the Marill said as he set a paw on one of the Staryu's appendages. "He doesn't actually talk using a mouth; he uses his mind to talk. He sends his thoughts to everyone's brains. That's usually not a problem for anyone. But he says that he can't get into your mind. He says that there's some weird barrier around your brain that keeps rejecting his thoughts. So… he can't really talk to you. At all. So he wants me to be his messenger."

All of the heat rising in Glace's cheeks vanished as soon as she heard that. She stopped scowling as she brought her gaze back to Topaz to find him staring at her. Though he had no eyes or mouth to convey his emotions, something in his slouched posture resembled deep sulking.

"So that's why you didn't talk to me. I didn't realize," Glace admittedly cautiously. "I didn't know that Staryu can't actually talk. I've never met one, so I wouldn't know."

Topaz's core glowed softly.

"He says it's alright," the Marill said to Glace. "So let's see… Topaz says that before you were asking if he was the oldest hatchling here... you mean oldest child, right? He doesn't know what a hatchling is."

"Yeah. Child," Glace answered. "I used the wrong word."

More flickers of light emitted from Topaz's core.

"He says he is. And he wants to know why you're asking that."

"He seemed older than the others and I wanted to know if it was true," Glace answered plainly. "I thought he would have left by now. He looks old enough to take care of himself."

"He says he doesn't want to leave. He likes it here. He thinks he might stay here forever."

"Really? He doesn't want to be with other Pokémon his age? I figure all these hatch… _children_ have to grate on your sanity sometimes."

"He says he likes being around everyone. He says they can be annoying, but so can everyone really. He says he wants to pay Mama Jera back anyway for finding him. He thinks helping her out here will be the best way he can tell her thanks for helping him."

"How did Jera help you?"

The Staryu's core remained dull. He turned away from the Weavile and seemed to gaze over at Jera in the distance, who was now including Aqua in her conversation with Serenity. Aqua kept her gaze fixed to the ground and shifted her tail along the ground, but she wasn't shirking behind Jera. She was able to stand before Serenity with some strength in her stature.

"Topaz says he was a mistake."

Glace looked back over to Topaz to see that he was still watching Jera, but still shining his core. The Marill wore a sad smile as he presumably listened to the Staryu's tale.

"He says that he was an accident. Before he hatched, his parents were happy with each other. They loved each other. But then one day they had him by accident. His parents didn't plan on having him, but he still showed up. And then a few days after he hatched, his dad ran away. His mom didn't know how to take care of him and would blame all her problems on him. She would sometimes think of getting rid of him. That's what he'd hear when she thought he was asleep.

"But then Mama Jera showed up one day and brought him here! She said she had taken him away from all that! And now nobody thinks about getting rid of him. Everyone here likes Topaz! Except Henry. Henry doesn't like him."

The Staryu's core glimmered with a dark, but strangely jovial sort of light.

"Yeah, you got a point. Maybe Henry doesn't actually like anyone," the Marill said with a little laugh.

"That's a sad story to hear, Topaz," Glace then said, causing the Staryu to turn back to her. "Your parents sound like real pieces of work."

"Topaz doesn't know what that means."

"It means that your parents sound unpleasant."

"Ohhhh, okay. Well, Topaz doesn't mind. He's away from them now and he's happy here. They're all in the past now. Mama Jera says that when you come here, you don't ever have to worry about the past ever again. The past stays in the past and stays here."

"So I see."

"Why were you brought here, Weevil? Mama Jera says we shouldn't ask anyone why they come here because it hurts, but you asked Topaz about why he's here and he doesn't hurt that much."

"My parents wanted to sell me to some other Pokémon because I'm a rare kind of Pokémon. They'd keep me in my bedroom while they looked for a client. Jera found me before they could find a buyer."

"Oh wow. Marsh's parents were kinda like that. But they kept him locked inside their house because they didn't want him to get hurt."

"It doesn't bother me either way. What's in the past is in the past, like you said. No reason to let it drag me down."

Glace knew it wasn't true. She didn't even know why she was lying to herself. She knew could never lie to herself about that. Why had she ever thought she could? She could never do it for years, what made now any different?

The Weavile pushed away the self-deprecating thoughts as she glanced over at the exit of the chamber.

"Marill, do you think you could show me where I can get something to eat?" Glace asked. "I haven't eaten in a while."

"Sure! I can do that," the Marill said. "And my name's Lapis by the way. You don't need to call me Marill."

"Alright. And just so that you know, you don't have to call me _Weevil_ anymore. My name is Glace."

"Glace. That's a weird name, but it sounds pretty too."

Topaz's core flickered for a moment. Based on the chuckling Lapis could barely hold back, Glace imagined it was a flippant remark about her name. However, she didn't say anything and watched as the Staryu then waddled toward the pool.

"Alright, see you later!" Lapis called out. "Don't get stuck in the coral!"

The two watched the Staryu reach the edge of the water before leaping right in with a splash. When the spray of water settled and the Staryu was nowhere to be seen, the Marill grabbed Glace's hand and headed for the chamber exit. Glace nearly tripped over herself from the sudden pull, but caught her footing and walked with him.

"Papa Ludo and Mama Anemone make the best greenberry fruit salads. You feel like your mouth is going to explode with joy every time you take a bite," Lapis said with an eager grin.

"They're the cooks of this place?" Glace asked.

"Yeah! Sometimes they help out Mama Jera when she's gone and when Mama Serenity can't help, but most of the time they make food for everyone."

"I see. Who are all of the adults anyway? And what do they all do? It seems a lot has changed since I was last here. All of the children that grew up with me left and I never really spoke to the adults. Jera's just about the only one I still remember."

"Well of course you can't forget Mama Jera; she saved you! But let's see. You met Mama Serenity already. She helps take care of us like Mama Jera and when she's not doing that she goes get food for everyone. Papa Ludo makes our food and he keeps the whole place clean. Mama Serene also makes our food, but she also finds us food like Mama Serenity. And then Papa Anemone keeps the whole place safe. He patrols the whole cave to make sure that nobody gets sucked out into the ocean and that nobody goes into the cave that isn't supposed to be there."

"Ah. And Mama Jera's jobs are to take care of us and to go out and rescue other children?"

"Yeah! She goes out every couple of weeks or something. And she'll go all over the world to find children like us, so sometimes she'll be gone for a really long time. I think she was even gone for two months once."

"I see. And the other adults are okay with Jera taking us away from our old families?"

"No, they don't know," Lapis then said, lowering his voice to a near whisper. "Mama Jera says not tell them. She says that they wouldn't understand that she saved all of us; they'd just think that she took all of us away from our homes. Mama Serenity knows because she grew up here, but not the other adults. So Mama Jera says that we can tell them about our old lives, just not that she took us away. We just say that our parents abandoned us or that they died."

The Marill then turned to look at Glace with an odd, puzzled stare.

"Didn't Mama Jera tell you the same thing when you were here?" he asked her.

Glace had to resist cursing. She had finally asked too much. She hadn't been careful. Now Lapis would begin to suspect her if she didn't think of an explanation fast. Once that ball started rolling, who knew what would happen next.

 _Well I got a suggestion for you._

 _I'll take your suggestion._

 _Tell Lapis…_

"…When I was still here, the other adults knew," Glace said, reciting Sonata's words the second she heard them. "They were okay with it. But maybe things changed after I left. Maybe Jera figured that these new adults weren't going to be okay with everything like the adults I was with. That's my explanation anyway."

"Oh. Okay," Lapis said simply. "That's too bad. I really don't like keeping secrets. Makes me feel all icky inside."

Glace nodded, but said nothing more. She only exhaled a quiet sigh as she continued walking with the Marill.

 _Thanks, Sonata._

 _No problem! Things like this used to happen all the time on my job. So I learned the art of making things up real fast._

 _I'm glad. I get the feeling that we're going to need that skill of yours quite a bit while we're looking for our other selves…_

* * *

"Mama Jera, don't leave me!"

Tears formed in Aqua's eyes before they rolled down her cheeks and dripped onto the floor. Jera could only stand there as the little Wooper buried herself in Jera's front tentacles. The sight made Jera want to wrap her arms around the crying Wooper and comfort her, but she knew she couldn't. She knew it was time to put some distance between her and the little child.

"Aqua, you can't stay with me forever," Jera said tenderly. "You have to stay here with your brothers and sisters, and Serenity too. She'll take good care of you."

"But I wanna be with you! I don't wanna be with anyone else!" Aqua cried. "Why can't I stay with you?"

"Because I need to go outside of the cavern by myself for a little while. I need a little alone time. But I promise, I'll be back soon. And when I come back, you can stay with me again. I'll even let you sleep in my bed again. So stay here with your siblings, okay?"

"Okay Mama Jera…"

The Wooper sniffled as she separated herself from Jera. Aqua cast the Octillery a longing stare as her tears slowly dried, but made no effort to fling herself back at Jera. She only watched Jera for a moment longer, as if waiting for Jera to say something. Jera gave the little one a beaming stare when she saw that. It wasn't the exact reaction Jera wanted, but it was a start. Eventually Aqua wouldn't suffer from such pitiful separation anxiety. Eventually she'd bond with her other siblings and not rely only on Jera's company.

"I'll see you soon, Aqua," Jera said.

Then, Jera crawled into the pool where all the children played. She didn't look back as slipped into the water and dived further into its depths. Though several of the children swam right past her, none of them halted her or tried to speak with her. They only kept swimming by, laughing and playing amongst themselves. It seemed they knew that Jera wasn't there for them.

The Octillery left behind the little ones as she slinked into a rocky corridor near the bottom of the pool and followed it to the outside world. After several minutes, she found herself out of the great cavern she called home and peering out into the vast ocean. She quickly surfaced before crawling onto a nearby rock just big enough to hold her. Other rocks stood near her, but they too remained unoccupied. She didn't even see any Wingull circling high above her, waiting to dive down and catch a good meal. She truly was alone, just as she wanted. All that kept her company was the rolling waves against her resting place, but she didn't mind it. The loud crash of water and the cool mist against her face soothed her.

Jera let her tentacles fall limp as she sank low to the rock. Oh, what an eventful past few days. She hadn't expected the entire neighborhood on Palm Island to remember her. She hadn't been there in years. She had been sure that they had forgotten all about her and Lapis. But it seemed they hadn't. Even though it had been years since she brought Lapis to the cavern, all of those Pokémon still remembered her. They still listened for her every night, anticipating her return. Deep down, Jera knew that she would be caught if she dared go back.

But she went anyway. She knew more children like Lapis and Aqua lived on Palm Island. She couldn't avoid the island until she withered away; she had to save all those children. She had to save them from their damaging lives and give them the chance to become the flourishing, healthy adults their parents would never let them become. No one else was going to save those children; no one else cared enough. Or they deemed it unethical, saying it was wrong to take away children from their families no matter the reason. It was always one of those two reasons.

In the end, it would only be Jera that would save those children. Her and any of her children that wanted to assist her would rescue all of those suffering.

It was with this thought that Jera then thought of Glace. She had forgotten all about the Weavile for so long, yet she had saved Jera during that utter disaster of a rescue. Jera still found herself at a loss at the very thought of that. No matter how much she thought about it or how much time she spent around the Weavile, the fact that she had forgotten all about Glace baffled her. How could she forget one of her children, especially one a species so rare as Glace's?

Could she have forgotten other children of hers? Were there other children she had saved and could no longer remember? If she could forget Glace of all Pokémon, then surely she could forget someone else. She could have countless other adult children in the world, all of them remembering her with fond memories with her being unable to do the same. The very thought of that made Jera's hearts sink deep inside her.

Was this is a sign that her age was finally catching up to her? Was this a sign that her mind was slowly withering away? In just a few more years, would her mind become so useless that she would no longer be able to remember the names of the children currently living with her? Would she no longer be able to save all those children all throughout the world, silently crying out for her?

A ghastly groaning sound broke across the ocean, snapping Jera out of her dreary thoughts. She thought it sounded like a creature, perhaps a monstrous beast from the darkest depths of the ocean, but she still found herself alone amongst the waves. Whatever the wretched noise was, it only continued as she lay there on her rock, completely petrified as her hearts beat quicker and quicker with each second.

All of the waves before Jera suddenly stilled as the unsettling sound dulled into a chilling echo. It wasn't long before absolute silence fell over the entire ocean. Jera cautiously touched the motionless water with the tip of one of her arms. Her arm dipped into the ocean without resistance, but no ripple formed on the water's surface. Jera swiftly withdrew her arm and felt a chill go over each of her arms. She couldn't see how this could be possible. Nothing she knew of could completely stop the ocean's currents on such a wide scale, not to mention prevent ripples. It almost seemed as though the entire ocean water had become frozen in time.

It was then that Jera saw a reflection of something in the water. Something as vibrant as the coral reef. The Octillery wasted no time in looking up at the sky.

There, tearing through the blue yonder, lay a great hole overflowing with swirling colors. She could see streaks of white zipping out of the great rip like lightning before disappearing into the far distance. They never once made noise as they reached their destination, no matter how long Jera waited with her tentacles curled tensely into her body.

Jera could only keep her eyes fixed to the ominous rift in the air, finding herself too frightened and perplexed to move. Was that rift making the water still? Exactly what was the rift and what did it mean?

 _ **That rift is the reason you are here.**_

Jera jolted. She swiveled her head around, searching for the source of the voice, but saw no one. She curled her tentacles around the rock beneath her as she looked back at the rift. It still hovered high above her, glaring down at her world with its eldritch indifference.

 _ **That rift is why that Weavile is here.**_

An onslaught of images suddenly swarmed into Jera's mind. A migraine shot through her head as each of the images flashed before her, forcing her to view every single one of them in rapid succession. She fell into the ocean as all of the information overwhelmed her, but she didn't even feel herself plummet into the water. She could only take in each and every thought as they bombarded her mind.

 _ **You were never a Remoraid.**_

Jera saw herself swimming through the ocean as a little Remoraid, young and in a great school of about fifty Remoraid. She imagined was no older than one year. She had no parents and she had nowhere to call home, but she didn't feel lonely with these Remoraid. They had happily integrated her into their group when they found her drifting about hopelessly. She enjoyed her time with them. They were all family.

 _ **You were never an Octillery.**_

Jera now saw herself in her current body, though much younger than she was now. She had evolved only a short time ago and left behind the Remoraid group, just as per custom with those that evolved. However, she didn't mind. She always knew she would leave one day, especially with that entire new world above the water. How could she not want to see it one day, especially when she could become a Pokémon that actually could gracefully crawl along the sand instead of flounder helplessly like so many other water Pokémon?

She had just found a nice cavern where the Pokémon there took care of any orphans they could find. She said she wanted to help them. She said she could help rescue any orphans she could find. She said it was a deep longing in her heart to save all those that she could. She wanted to be just like those kind Remoraid that had kept her safe and sound for so many years. She wanted to save those who couldn't save themselves.

 _ **Your name is not Jera.**_

Jera saw herself taking her first child from Seashell Island. He was a little Oshawott she had found in a little bed of kelp by the sea. His parents had been nowhere to be seen. She took him in her tentacles and prepared to hurry back to the cavern. But just before she could go, she saw a little Squirtle on the beach near her, crying alone. She went up to him and asked why he was crying. He told her his parents hadn't come home in days and that he missed them. He said that they did this all the time, but it never made anything easier. She remembered how the thought of that hurt all three of her hearts.

She realized in that moment that not only orphans needed saving. Children with parents who brought harm to the little ones needed saving as well.

She didn't hesitate to take that Squirtle with her back to the cavern along with the Oshawott.

 _ **The same can be said about the Weavile you think you saved long ago.**_

Jera saw herself holding a little Sneasel in her arms. She shivered and kept asking Jera if the cavern would really be a better place for her. Jera told her she would be loved dearly there, more than her supposed parents ever could.

She saw herself raising that little Sneasel, watching her laugh and frolic through the rocky chambers and slurping up Clamperl insides with her endearing smile. She saw the little Sneasel swimming in the pool with all of the other children, watching how quickly she learned to maneuver through the water with the swiftness and grace of a Milotic.

What a happy little child Glace had been. Jera couldn't believe she had forgotten so many touching memories of such a sweet girl.

How could she have forgotten?

 _ **You never knew her. She was never a part of this dimension.**_

All of Jera's happy memories of the happy Sneasel shattered apart as something else took over. Now she saw that same Sneasel softly trekking through a land covered with something white and soft. She didn't wear that innocent smile Jera had seen in her memories; she wore the focused glare of a fierce hunter on the prowl. Her feet didn't even make a sound as she traversed through the vast field of white.

 _ **She knows what she is.**_

The Sneasel snapped her head to the side, and then pounced. She jammed her claws down into the white as she landed. A shrill cry pierced through the air before a deafening silence fell over the land. The Sneasel ripped her claws from out of the ground to reveal a dead Dedenne in her grasp. Its blood trickled down her pearly claws and splattered onto the white ground, dying it the vibrant color of fresh death.

 _ **She knows what you are and she knows neither of you belong here.**_

And with that, the voice let Jera be, thrusting her out of the surreal memory world and back into the lulling sea.


	8. We Don't Belong Here

Glace continued to stare down at the strange concoction sitting in her lap. It was a stone bowl filled with a mix of various fruits, some yellow and round, others red and triangular, and even stranger ones being green and circular with a white and black core. Ludo had given it to her after she and Lapis tracked him down, and then after he prepared the both of them a bowl, she returned back to the pool where all the children played. And yet, even as she sat against a cave wall and gazed into the colorful array prepared just for her, she couldn't bring herself to even touch the berries within. She had never seen any of these fruits in her dimension. In fact, she was fairly certain none of these fruits existed in her world.

If she dared to eat them, would her body react well to it? Would she grow sick from ingesting the downright alien food?

"Don't be shy! Papa Ludo's greenberry salads are amazing!"

Glace looked over to her side to find Lapis sitting beside her, greedily stuffing the fruit into his mouth. Barely any fruit remained within the bowl. Glace knew he hadn't been sitting next to her for very long. She honestly wondered how he managed to grasp the berries with his stubby paws that lacked any semblance of claws.

"It has an alarming amount of black and white dots in it," Glace stated flatly.

"Those are just seeds. They're in all strawberries and bananas and greenberries," Lapis assured. "You're supposed to eat them. What, have you never had any of those before?"

"No."

" _What?!_ I don't know anyone who hasn't had them before. How did you live with yourself?"

"I ate meat and eggs. There were some fruits I used to have, but they weren't whatever these are."

"Well then that gives you even more of a reason to eat greenberry salad. Go on, try it! You'll love it. I don't know anyone who doesn't."

Glace frowned, but realized there was no avoiding the dish before her. Besides, she hadn't eaten anything since she had that Magikarp on the boat with the Vigoroth and Slowking. She needed food whether she liked it or not.

She picked up one of the sliced greenberry pieces between two of her claws and held it near her face. It felt sticky in her grasp and had a soft, almost mushy texture that that gave in when she pressed her claws into its skin.

Glace stared at the fruit slice for a moment longer, and then finally took a bite. Her fangs cut through the soft flesh instantly as a strong, sweet flavor filled her mouth. She couldn't stop herself from shoving the rest of the greenberry into her mouth, savoring the warm, tingling sensation that the fruit brought. None of Pokémon she had ever eaten tasted like this before. Their blood had its own form of sweetness to it, but it was more salty than actually sugary.

"See? I told you that you'd like it," Lapis laughed. "And it tastes even better when you have all of the fruits together!"

Glace wasted no time in taking all three of the colorful berries and cramming them into her mouth. Just as Lapis promised, an explosion of sweet, tarty flavors filled her maw. They all blended so seamlessly together, complementing one another to make something borderline heavenly. She couldn't understand how she could have lived her entire life without these fruits. She didn't know it was possible for her dimension to not hold anything resembling these succulent berries.

Maybe her dimension did have them, she then considered. Maybe she had never seen them because she simply hadn't looked for them. Maybe she had been so content to live the rest of her life off meat that she had never bothered to venture beyond that. Of course, even if her dimension did have these fruits, it didn't really matter anymore. She wouldn't be going back to her dimension again.

It didn't take long for all of Glace's fruit to vanish. She didn't even realize it until her claws scrapped against the bottom of the bowl and only touched the hard rock. The moment she realized this, Glace looked over into Lapis's bowl. Much to her dismay, his bowl was also just as empty. She frowned glumly as she stared back down into her bowl, brooding in the thought of how she had devoured her salad so quickly.

"You really liked the greenberry salad, didn't you?" Lapis asked with a laugh in his voice.

"Yes," Glace answered quietly. "It was delicious."

"You wanna go ask Papa Ludo for more? I bet he'd be willing to give us seconds since everyone else is swimming."

"Yes, I think I would like that very much."

Glace grabbed her bowl and swiftly got to her feet. She could feel her ears perking up as her heart beat enthusiastically in her chest. She could even feel her mouth watering at the thought of having even more of the delightful greenberries. From the way Lapis seemed to practically jump to his feet as well, she imagined he was just as eager as her.

The two were just about to head back to see Ludo when Glace noticed someone nearing them from the corner of her eye. She turned toward the pool to find Jera emerging from the water and crawling her way straight toward the two of them. Any thoughts of food disappeared from Glace's mind as she and Lapis watched the Octillery come near them.

When Jera came closer, Glace immediately noticed something different about the Octillery. Something glimmered in her eyes that made Glace uneasy. Something not necessarily sinister, but something not entirely benevolent either. Whatever it was, Lapis didn't seem to notice it one bit, for he only bounced in place with a gleeful smile.

"Hi Mama Jera!" he cried.

The Octillery stopped before the two of them. The strange glint in her eyes disappeared as she gave Lapis a beaming stare.

"Hello there, Lapis," she greeted. "Are you doing well?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Glace and I got greenberry salads from Papa Ludo," Lapis said as he gave a meaningful glance to Glace. "She's never had greenberries or strawberries or bananas before. She almost wouldn't eat the salad. Can you believe that?"

"Never had greenberries, strawberries, or bananas before? I've never heard of a Pokémon who hasn't. I thought they were all fairly common fruits on every island in the world. I have yet to come across an island that doesn't have at least one of those fruits."

"Well she didn't. But she loves them now. She ate the whole bowl in like two minutes!"

Jera glanced over at the Weavile. It was when they locked gazes did Glace see that strange look in Jera's eyes again. Now that she stood much closer to Jera, she could actually identify what that strange glimmer was. She had seen it enough times in her younger, less confident clan mates to recognize it anywhere.

It was apprehension.

 _But why? Why does she look like that? She always looks so happy, and now… not so much. Kind of gives me the chills, really._

 _Perhaps something has happened in the time she was gone. Do you think that perhaps she knows who we are?_

 _But how would she know? Glace hasn't said anything to her. She shouldn't be able to figure anything out. I mean, how could anyone possibly figure out they're a fragment of someone else if someone else didn't tell them?_

 _You knew, Sonata. You knew what we really are and you didn't need anyone to tell you anything._

 _Well yeah, but… that's because I saw the tear. And I'm the only one who figured it all out just by seeing that tear. You looked at the tear before I showed up Glace and you saw the tear before Glace ever showed up, Yore. You both were totally oblivious before someone had to spell everything out for you._

 _If you figured who you were just by seeing a tear, then it could happen to any of the other fragments. We can't think they need us to tell them what they are. Maybe some of them can figure it out on their own._

 _I hope not. Because if some of the other fragments actually do figure out who they are before we get to them..._

"Lapis, Glace and I needed to talk in private for a little while," Jera then said as she looked back at the Marill. "Do you think you could find Aqua and keep her company until I come back? I need someone to make sure she's alright."

"Okay Mama Jera! No problem!" Lapis said dutifully.

The little Marill then took off, presumably in search of the Wooper. With Lapis now gone, Jera brought her stare back over to Glace. Glace felt a sinking feeling in her chest as the Octillery's gaze seemed to bore into her.

"We should go somewhere the children can't bother us," Jera said, all the liveliness in her voice gone. "Let's go to the sleeping chamber. No one should be there for some time."

Though Glace would have rather stayed in that chamber, surrounded by all of Jera's children, she knew she couldn't. She knew what would happen next couldn't possibly end well, but she couldn't avoid it. So with only a nod, she followed the Octillery out of the room and into the resting quarters. Neither one of them said a single word as they entered the large room. Jera settled herself near one of the many green piles of plant-like substance that decorated the room. Glace stayed close to her, but didn't sit down. Her muscles felt too jittery to even consider any sort of relaxation.

"Why are you here, Glace?" Jera asked in a quiet, almost monotone voice that didn't suit her.

 _Sweet Arceus, she knows. Auuugh, great, just great. How does she even know? We didn't say anything to her! We-_

 _We don't know that._

 _Well why else would she ask why we're here? She's obviously not asking you why you're in this cave; she already knows that. She wouldn't ask you something stupid. So obviously the only reason she would ask that is because she knows who you really are. Raugh, this wasn't supposed to happen! None of the fragments are supposed to-_

"Because you brought me here," Glace answered, forcing herself to appear impassive even with Sonata's screaming echoing in her mind. "Why are you asking me that?"

"I'm not an idiot, and I know you're not one either. You know what I really meant when I asked that question."

"No, I don't. I'm not a mind-reader and I'm not going to pretend I'm one. Why don't you tell me what you really mean?"

Jera narrowed her eyes at the Weavile. Glace didn't let her persona break even as the sinking feeling grew deeper into her chest.

"I never rescued you when you were a child," Jera stated in a dark tone. "I don't know how you did it, but you made me think I did. Why did you do that? Who are you really and where are you really from?"

 _See, she does know! She found out! So much for making this different from meeting Yore. Where did we go wrong though? We did everything right! We kept our identities a secret, we didn't stand out, we made a good lie about who we were, Jera actually seemed to believe it, we-_

 _Sonata, I can't think with all of your thoughts buzzing around in my head._

 _I can't help it! I always get like this when things go wrong. My brain becomes a mess and it starts going a million miles an hour and my head starts spinning and my heart feels like it's going to jump out of my chest._

 _I thought that you could think of anything to get you out of a situation. Just earlier, you came up with a lie that helped me with Lapis._

 _Well yeah, if I know there's a way out of this and if it's not a big deal. But this is a big deal and there isn't a way out of this. She_ _ **knows,**_ _Glace. You can't look at her and deny that. And she shouldn't know, because if she knows, the others might know, and if the others know, then we'll never be able to find everyone._

 _Well figure something out, because I can't figure a way out of this when all I hear are your jumbled thoughts. What do you do when you get like this on missions where there didn't seem to be any options? You're still alive, so clearly you always worked something out._

 _I just try to get away. I fly away as fast as I can because that's all I can do. I fly away and try to get away from those people that want to kill me. Like this one mission that proved I was fit for Downfall. There were these enemies I had to go visit in their base and one of them caught me. He tried to kill me and I got so scared, so I blew the whole place up and then all these rocks started falling and everyone started dying and-_

"Then just shut up!"

A deafening silence came over Glace's mind. She felt the Noivern shirk back into the dark, unreachable corners of her head. All of the erratic thoughts that once bombarded her head ceased to exist, leaving it quiet and empty, but also vastly lonely. She couldn't even find Yore anywhere within her; he had disappeared without a trace.

"What did you just say to me?" Jera asked, instantly closing the distance between her Glace.

"I… Oh, I said that out loud," Glace realized frailly. "I didn't realize. I thought I only said that in my head. My thoughts were bothering me."

"Regardless of the reason, don't you ever do that to me again. Now let me ask again; who are you and where are you really from, Glace? If that's even your real name."

Glace sighed. She had wanted to keep the charade up for a couple more days, but it seemed that was no longer a reality. She didn't know how much Jera knew, but it didn't matter. The time to tell Jera the truth had finally come.

The Weavile straightened her posture and gazed down at the fuming Octillery. Jera's tense glare still sent shivers down her spine despite the Octillery being quite a bit shorter than Glace, but she ignored the feeling.

"My name is Glace, I never lied about that," the Weavile said, refusing to let her voice waver. "But I lied about everything else. You're right; I was never one of the children you took care of. I only told you that because I knew you'd recognize me. I hoped that it would let you grow comfortable around me before I told you who I really am and who _you_ really are."

"And what exactly are we?" Jera asked.

"We're fragments of a being known as the Keeper of Realms. You're not actually an Octillery and I'm not actually a Weavile; we just took on these forms when we got sent to our dimensions. But in reality, we're really just pieces of a very powerful creature."

Jera's stern gaze didn't break. She kept it fixed to the Weavile as she shifted her tentacles around on the flooring.

"And why are you here?" Jera then asked, her voice still as flat as before.

"Because all of the dimensions are going to fall apart," Glace answered solemnly. "Something is tearing apart the binding that holds them all together. I don't know how long it's going to take, maybe a few days or maybe a few years, but it's going to eventually destroy all of the dimensions. Our old self can fix that though. If we turn back into it, it'll go ahead and stop all of that destruction from happening. So that's why I'm here; I came here so you could help me get the other fragments so we can all stop this disaster from happening."

"And how do you know any of this?"

"One of the fragments told me. And I saw our old self as well. I talked to it for a moment. I've also seen the dimensional tear; I've seen it in my dimension and another dimension. I imagine that it's going to show up in this dimension sometime soon."

"It already has."

A bewildered frown broke through Glace's stoic expression. Jera's own stern expression remained steadfast as she increased the distance between the two of them.

"It's a large hole in the sky with many colors in it, isn't it?" Jera asked.

"Yeah. It is," Glace answered. "And something happened to you after you saw that tear, I imagine."

"…Someone talked to me after I saw that anomaly. There was a voice who told me you and I don't belong here and that you and I weren't who we think we are. If we truly are fragments, then maybe that was our complete self."

"So then you know that I mean it when I say I need you to help me find the others."

Jera glanced down at her mangled tentacle as she twisted it in the air.

"Have you met any of the others?"

"I've met two of them. One's a Noivern named Sonata and the other is a Tranquill named Yore."

"And where are they now?"

Glace didn't know how she wanted to answer that question. She knew she could simply tell Jera the truth and that would be it. That would be the easiest answer to all of this. But if she did that, then it might scare Jera off. What sort of Pokémon would willingly get assimilated and become nothing more than thoughts in someone else's head? Yore had been a special case, if only because of his life circumstances. The same couldn't be said about Jera. Jera probably realized they had to all merge back together in the end to become their old self, but she didn't know that they could right now.

"Where are the other fragments?" Jera asked again.

 _Maybe you should just tell her the truth._

 _No. She'll never come with us if I do._

 _She will. She has to. I mean, Yore did even after everything that happened._

 _Not if I tell her where you and Yore are. She's not like both of you. I didn't claw out her eye and she's not unhappy with her life. She actually wants to be here and help all of those hatchlings._

 _Fine. Guess we'll just lie to her some more. You know she's going to find out though; she already found out about why you're really here._

 _I can keep this lie longer._

 _Fine, fine. I've got something you can tell her then. Should work for a while. Tell her…_

"They're looking for the others," Glace recited. "There's eleven of us in total and we figured it would be easier to look for them separately. Saves us all time instead of just staying together in one group."

 _Why didn't we do that? That seems like a more effective plan instead of letting Glace assimilate us._

 _Because you guys don't know where to go. I do._

 _You could have told me. I would have followed your instructions. I know how important it is to find everyone._

 _I guess I could have… well, maybe-_

"I understand," Jera said with a nod. "And I presume that you're all meeting back together at a certain time?"

"Yeah. We meet back at a certain dimension after each of us gets two fragments. Then after we're all together, we're going to decide how we're going to find the last two fragments. So you're the first one on my list. After you, I have one more to find."

"You seem very organized. That's quite good for something as important as the goal you have in mind. Unfortunately, you'll have to exclude me from your list, because I'm not coming with you."

Glace had anticipated this. She knew that no sane Pokémon would ever leave their home without good reason, even if they weren't entirely happy with their life. But she still couldn't help but shoot Jera a glare as volatile energy spiked inside her.

"Jera, the dimensions are going to collapse on each other," the Weavile said, resisting the urge to growl. "This isn't something you can just back out of. We need everyone to become our old self, not _mostly_ everyone."

"My opinion on the matter remains the same," Jera replied firmly. "I have too much to do here. There are so many children in the world that are in need of saving. I have to find all of them."

"You mean steal them from their homes."

"Wrong, I'm _saving_ them. If those children remain with their parents, they will grow into adults just as broken as their parents and repeat the cycle with their own children. You cannot deny that the children here in this cavern are much happier here and will undoubtedly live much better lives than they ever could with their parents."

"You're right, I can't. I can't deny that the stories I heard from some of those children were horrifying… but I still can't agree with how you deal with their situations. There has to be a better option than abducting them."

"Well, there isn't, I'm afraid. I refuse to let any children be hurt by the actions of poisonous parents who have no intentions of ever changing, even for the sake of others."

"Did you ever give any of the parents a chance to change?"

"Yes, one time decades ago when I wanted to see if I actually needed to keep taking children away from their harmful families. There were two parents that were verbally abusive to their son. They always told him how worthless he was and that he couldn't do anything right, no matter how much he tried. I found them when their son was only a year old and told them to change their ways or else I'd take their son away. Do you think they did? No, they moved to a faraway island shortly after that and by the time I found them again years later, I saw they hadn't changed one bit. Their poor son ended up having endless, self-deprecating thoughts tormenting him all throughout his childhood. He still hasn't outgrown it even as an adult. I could have prevented that just by taking that child with me when I first found him, but I didn't. Now he lives the rest of his life with those voices in his head constantly telling him he has no purpose in this world and is better off dead."

"That was one pair of parents."

"One was enough for me to never make that mistake again. I'm not sure why you insist on arguing with me. I refuse to come with you no matter what you might tell me. Someone has to save all those children."

Glace clenched her claws into fists. She knew she had to convince Jera to come with her. She knew there was no other option in the grand scheme of everything. Jera's entire reason for living wouldn't mean a thing if every single being in existence died.

And yet, she couldn't find it in herself to make a compelling argument. She only had to look into Jera's eyes to see the unwavering dedication and devotion to the hurting children of this dimension. It almost surprised Glace; she hadn't seen such a powerful commitment in any other Pokémon she had ever seen. It reminded her of the raging bonfires she saw in Granite Town during the festivals.

"Speaking of that, I need to find more of those hurting children right now," Jera said as she turned away from the Weavile. "When I come back, I expect you to be gone. I don't ever want to see you again."

The Octillery then unceremoniously crawled away and headed out of the chamber. Glace watched her go from the corner of her eye. She could feel the jittering in her legs and the forceful beating in her chest, but she ignored it.

 _No Glace, you can't just stay quiet. You have to get Jera to help us! We need her!_

 _She's not going to leave. She's not going to come with us no matter what I tell her. She's too stubborn for her own good._

 _We can't just let her stay here. You know we can't do that._

 _What else am I supposed to do then?_

 _Well… maybe we can force her to come with us._

 _You want me to drag her out of this dimension by force? I already know how that's going to end; she'll drown me in the ocean the second I touch her. She has to be strong if she can abduct all of those Pokémon._

 _She's right, Sonata; Jera will drown Glace. Especially since Glace has never dealt with Octillery before in combat._

 _No, not like that. You two don't get it. I mean… Glace could_ _ **assimilate**_ _Jera._

Glace saw herself tackling Jera down to the cavern floor in her mind's eye. She saw herself digging her claw into the Octillery's slimy skin as Jera's thrashing, fleshy body morphed into an iridescent light. She could see what was once Jera seeping into her claw, becoming one with her just as Sonata and Yore had.

 _Sonata… you can't be serious. You honestly want Glace to forcefully absorb Jera?_

 _Look, I get it's a messed up thing to do. But we do need her. So I figure, if we can willingly get absorbed into Glace, maybe Glace can also force someone to get assimilated as well._

 _I'm not entirely comfortable with that thought. It's true that we do need everyone, I'm just as dedicated as the both of you to our former self's wishes, but to force someone to merge with Glace…_

 _We have to have her. We need everyone. It's not a fun thought, I know, but if she won't come with us… well, what else are we supposed to do? So maybe we can just-_

 _ **No.**_

Glace's unwavering thought boomed through her mind, silencing the other two fragments. The Weavile's frown grew as she visualized Yore and Sonata within her mind, the both of them shooting her anxious gazes.

 _I'm not assimilating anyone against their will. Maybe Jera's fine with abducting someone for their own good, and maybe you are, Sonata, but I'm not. Forcing someone to do something against their will is where I draw the line._

 _But she has to come with us! We can't just leave her here! I don't want to do this either, but if Jera won't come with us…_

 _Then we'll think of something else. We're not forcing assimilation._

 _Like what? What are we going to do? You said it yourself; she's not going to listen to you no matter what you say._

 _We can come back for her another time. Maybe we can give Jera some time to think over everything I told her and we can find another fragment in the meantime._

 _No, we can't do that. Sorry Glace, but we can't just skip someone and then come back later. Because if we do it for one fragment, we'll do it for all the others. You really think Jera is going to be the only one who'll refuse to come with us no matter what we say? We have to get her before we get anyone else. We have to stay here in this dimension until Jera comes with us._

Glace could practically feel Sonata weighing down on her mind, as if forcefully trying to make Glace submit to her. It made her head hurt and her thoughts tangled into tight knots. But though Sonata's power proved to be great, it didn't stop one thought from springing out of the Noivern's hold and granting Glace the power she needed to fight back.

 _You're not the one in charge here, Sonata. You never were. Just because finding the others was your idea doesn't automatically make you the leader._

 _I'm not, I'll admit that. But I'm the one who knows where everyone one else is. And apparently I'm the only one who really seems to care about stopping everyone from dying and doing whatever it takes to get that done._

 _No, you're just the only one who's obsessed with finding the others. That's all you think about; find the other fragments and become our old self. It makes you willing to do things nobody would ever even think about doing._

 _No, that's just being dedicated to something and putting all your heart and soul into it. Whenever Downfall needed me to do something, I would do the same thing. I'd get my job done no matter what. I served him faithfully as his best spy ever. That's what being_ _ **loyal**_ _means._

 _And yet you abandoned him._

Silence fell over the fragments. Glace winced when she realized what she had just thought. She hadn't intended to say that. She didn't have the faintest clue where that thought had even come from. She had only wanted to end the argument altogether in a peaceful manner.

" _Congratulations, Sonata. You have passed your test. Because of that, I'm happy to tell you that I will gladly give you one of the most esteemed positions in the entire Division: to be my most treasured reconnaissance expert. The title is now yours."_

The underwater cavern disappeared right before Glace's very eyes. Now she found herself standing before a large, four-legged creature with pearly ribbons billowing at his sides and a flowing lavender mane that seemed to embody the very wind. He towered over her in size as the ethereal light of mysterious orbs surrounding them glimmered against his fine pelt, giving him a very silver, majestic appearance that would be fit for a god. And yet, despite his intimidating stature, Glace only saw warmth in his crimson eyes that beamed down upon her. She could feel her heart soaring in her chest as the mighty Pokémon smiled.

That smile meant everything to her. The entire world could be burning to the ground, but if she could see that smile amongst the flames and sooty haze, then everything would be fine.

She lived to see that smile that said to her, "you are my most treasured Pokémon and I couldn't be more proud of you."

" _Thank you, Downfall! You have no idea how happy this makes me!"_

" _Hmmhmm, all I have to do is see your expression to understand completely. You have a right to feel as ecstatic as you are, however. Not many ever receive the title you now hold."_

Glace covered her mouth with her claws as she suppressed a little giggle. She knew she shouldn't have been acting this way, it was most certainly undignified, but she couldn't help it. She had wanted this for far too long. She had wanted to serve him ever since she first caught a secret glimpse of him all those years ago during a conversation she was never supposed to hear. To serve a Suicune, the embodiment of the very wind that carried her through the skies, what a joy! And not only that, but to have him be the leader of a powerful organization who wanted to bring back prosperity to their corrupt world. How could she not want to be there for him? How could she not want to dedicate her entire life to helping him restore their region to its former glory?

She had no true purpose as a delivery Pokémon. Oh yes, she flew every day and delivered letters and parcels for all those overjoyed people, but that paled in comparison to being Downfall's follower. As his loyal follower, she would bring lasting change to the world. As his loyal follower, she would actually belong somewhere. She would no longer be that strange Noibat that spent all her childhood as a delivery Pokémon because she didn't know what to do with herself or have a place to call home. She would evolve and become a strong Noivern, and she would be at Downfall's side. Whatever it took, she'd be there for him. But she couldn't just be any ordinary member of his division. No, she needed to be his _greatest_ member. She needed to be his most treasured servant, to be the one who aided him most in restoring the region.

Little by little, she'd make herself his most esteemed follower. One day, she'd rise above all the others.

Now, ten long, exhausting years later, she had done it. Now as a twenty-six year old Noivern, she was his personal spy. Now she could always serve right under him, to always see his beaming smile and to aid him in his most dire hours.

" _Thank you, Downfall. Really… thank you so much. I swear, no matter what happens, I'm never going to abandon you or betray you or anything stupid like that. The only thing that's going to stop me from ever helping you is if I die, and even if that happens, I'm pretty sure I can figure out a way to help you as a ghost or something."_

" _Ah, what marvelous and enthusiastic words to hear. I do hope you mean them, Sonata. I value loyalty and honesty above all else in my members."_

" _I do! Even if your entire division turns against you or if the whole world starts falling apart, I'll always be the one you can count on. I promise."_

Downfall's smile brightened at the sound of that. Glace lowered her claws and wrapped her wings around her body as a warm shudder went over her skin. She hoped she wasn't blushing as she averted her gaze from the Suicune.

But she did mean every word she said. She would be there for Downfall. She always would. He was her purpose. She could never abandon the one that gave her life meaning.

Downfall suddenly disappeared, as did the ethereal lights and the awkward but pleasant feeling radiating throughout her being. Now she found herself inside of her room, gazing out at the window. Tears leaked from her eyes as a painful, throbbing feeling twisted inside of her chest. She could just barely see the dimensional tear through her blurry vision, but it stood out like a full moon in the night sky. She could see the swirling colors and the white lightning streaking out of its core.

But most of all, she could still hear the voice in her head from a week ago. She could still hear the voice from her vision as clear as day.

" _ **You have to find your other selves, Sonata. All of you have to become one if you want to stop that rift from tearing destroying every dimension that ever has and ever will exist. You can't stay here anymore."**_

Glace covered her eyes with her claws as she collapsed onto the ground. She bit down on her tongue as sobs escaped from the back of her throat and filled the room with her misery.

None of this had to be true. That vision could have been the result of a bad migraine; she had heard of that happening before. But after knowing the anomaly that had happened in Sycamore Forest just the other day, she knew there was no denying the reality of the situation.

Glace weakly crawled over to a table in the room and pulled herself up to its surface. With shaking claws, she grabbed a piece of paper and an ink pad. She could barely hold her claw tip just still enough for her to dip it into the pad before pressing it into the paper's surface.

" _Downfall… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Downfall…"_

Glace found herself back in the underwater cavern. She quickly looked down at her claws to find that she was once again a Weavile. However, the twisting and the breaking in her chest hadn't disappeared. She could still feel it, seemingly trying to rend her heart into two. She could already feel the water forming in the corners of her eyes as the feeling slowly overwhelmed her. Just standing up required too much effort.

 _Sonata, stop it. Stop making me feel this way._

The Noivern didn't answer. Glace grimaced as she dug her claws into her scalp.

 _Sonata, make it stop. I shouldn't have said what I did about Downfall, okay? I was wrong to say that._

And yet, she still didn't respond. Glace growled, but it came out more as a whimper than anything else. This twisting in her chest stung with far more ferocity than any hunting incident ever had. No cut in her arm, no fire that ate away at her skin, not even the one Umbreon bite that had made entire puddles of her blood all over the snow could ever rival the pain of her fracturing heart.

 _Yore, make Sonata stop._

Yore didn't respond either. Glace felt the tears escape from her eyes and stream down her face.

 _Sonata… Yore… please…_

Yet still, no one heeded Glace's call. Glace finally lost the strength to stand and collapsed onto her side. She curled into a ball as the stinging pain worked its way into her mind and left her with a throbbing headache. The tears continued to flow down her face as she feebly held herself with her claws and whimpered with every shaky breath she took.

In that moment, Glace was no longer the Weavile fragment of a grand being. She was no longer a dojo master of Granite Town. She was no longer one of the most competent and dependable huntresses of the Weavile clan who roamed the lands. She wasn't even the odd, parent-less Sneasel that the clan had found only days earlier amongst their members, always demanding for a hunt, even when the clan had plenty of food for many days to come.

She was a helpless hatchling calling out to a mother that would never come, utterly alone in a cold and unforgiving world.

 _It hurts… it hurts…_

* * *

Jera left the cavern with haste, taking the most unoccupied path back to the ocean. She hoped that Aqua would forgive her for not returning as quickly as she had promised. She didn't even want to imagine the poor child weeping out her little heart, crying out for Jera as Lapis held her tenderly.

However, she knew she couldn't stay in this cavern as long as Glace remained. She needed to put as much distance between her and that despicable Weavile as possible. One rescue trip ought to be enough time for Glace to leave and for the malicious thoughts in Jera's head to settle.

But oh, how dare Glace trick her like that! She didn't know how she had done it, but that conniving Weavile had made her eat up every single word she spoke. Somehow she had planted those fake memories in her head and leeched off of Jera's good-hearted nature thanks to her trick. And for what? So that she could take her away to find these supposed other selves in other dimensions? So that they could supposedly mend the massive tear in the sky before it destroyed everything?

Jera soon found herself before the very ocean she sought. She could see the sun beginning its descent into the horizon. It would only be a matter of hours before it set completely. However, it didn't matter what time it was; nothing mattered after everything that had happened in the sleeping chamber.

Jera's body temperature didn't cool in the slightest as she slipped into the water. The water actually rippled as she sank beneath its surface, much to Jera's relief. Whatever that rift had done to the water had seemed to have worn off. After she took note of this, she swam toward Stardust Island. It was the closest island to the cave, only a two hour's trip worth of a swim. She hadn't been there in a few months, but she decided now would be the best time to go back. It would be the best island to travel to now anyway; her tentacles still felt sore from the last rescue trip. In truth, she knew she should have rested for at least another five days before attempting another trip. She needed all of her energy and strength to creep through the sandy, unfriendly islands without being detected.

But she needed to keep her mind away from that Weavile. She had to remain distracted, to be as far removed from her as possible.

And yet, as Jera shifted through the currents, her mind wouldn't stop going back to Glace and everything that she had said. She could still hear the Weavile's words so clearly as if she were right there, swimming right beside her.

" _I came here so you could help me get the other fragments so we can all stop this disaster from happening."_

" _This isn't something you can just back out of."_

What Glace had said weren't lies; Jera knew that. Something in her mind adamantly believed every single word that Glace spoke. Of course, she had also believed Glace when she had said that she was one of her former children, but this felt different. This felt instinctual, like knowing how to swim.

But she couldn't go with Glace. She had to save and nurture all of the hurting children in the world. She couldn't abandon her duty. She couldn't leave behind everything she ever cared for to go on this vague journey with that Weavile. She would supposedly stop all of the universes from collapsing on each other, but who would save the children while she was gone? She had Serenity, but she couldn't serve as an adequate replacement. Serenity was ill-equipped for the land, but that wasn't her fault. It was nothing more than a flaw of her species. Primarina were never meant to be land-dwellers; most water-types weren't. Jera had only been fortunate to have the potential to evolve into a creature that could traverse land, even if she couldn't remain on the surface world for long-term periods.

It didn't matter what Glace told her; she simply couldn't leave. It didn't matter if she didn't belong to this dimension. She had too many obligations tying her to it. If her former self had actually wanted her to leave, it shouldn't have dropped her off in a world full of suffering, helpless children. How could she possibly ignore that?

Sometime later, Jera could finally see the seafloor. As opposed to being far beneath her, buried in the darkness, it now only sat a few feet below her reach. She could see the green coral and the greying rocks looming near. They weren't nearly as appealing as the colorful rainbow of a coral reef at the cavern, as it only brought out the utter bareness of the area, but the sight was an indicator that she was near her destination all the same.

The Octillery floated back to the surface before poking her head out of the water. The sun still remained in the sky as she had anticipated, but she could see it slowly beginning to disappear behind her. She imagined by the time she reached the island, it would set completely, or at least disappear enough so that only shades of lavender and pink painted over the blue of the sky. However, it wasn't the sun that caught Jera's attention the most. It was the dimensional tear, hovering right above Stardust Island. It still loomed with its ominous lights flashing and swirling about within its bowels.

The moment Jera saw it, her three hearts sank deep inside of her. So this was where the rift actually was. She hadn't been completely sure when she saw it manifest hours prior; it was always difficult to tell precisely where something is or how far away it is when it's airborne. Jera could only imagine how everyone on the island was reacting to the sight of this otherworldly omen watching them from high above, tarnishing their precious sky and all of the stars it held. She could practically see everyone gathered outside of their homes, pointing and gasping at the rift. Some might hold each other close, especially the little children as their imaginations ran wild with possibilities.

How long did everyone have before the rift tore apart the barriers between every dimension, as Glace had described it? What would happen when it did? Would the contents of another dimension spill onto the island and sink it, which would then cause a massive tsunami that would wipe out the rest of the islands in the world? Or would there only be a flash of light and then everything and everyone would be extinguished from existence instantly, just like that?

If she did help Glace, could she actually stop all of that from happening? Could she honestly close up that monstrous rift that tore through the untouchable sky? Could a mere Octillery be capable of such a downright impossible feat that bent the mind to even consider?

But then what of the children? What would happen to the children while she was gone? Who would care for the children? And what if disaster struck while she was away? What if the rift…

A ghastly groaning sound penetrated the air. Jera immediately recognized that sound to be the same one she had heard before the rift appeared. Suddenly she felt very frail and helpless in that ocean water and wanted to do nothing more than hide in between the rocks below. Nothing could hurt her there. Nothing could ever reach her and devour her if she hid in those rocks and changed her skin color to match their muted grey.

The colors in rift shifted more rapidly. The edges of the tear shuddered and stretched, as if something were pulling at them. Squelching, skittering sounds joined with the ghoulish groaning.

Only bugs made that sound. This sounded too much like the bugs of the night as they scurried away from her. But what kind of bug made a sound so loud that it resounded across the whole ocean?

Jera immediately regretted asking that question.

The rift widened, and then something fell from it. Something massive that filled the entire rift. Something fleshy and grotesque. Something that felt _wrong and shouldn't be there._

That something then collapsed right on top of the entire island with a harrowing crash.

A piercing, otherworldly wail tore through the air. Everything around her grew hazy and as a pounding went off in her head. Was that each of her hearts beating?

No, never mind that. Where was a rock? She needed a rock. She needed to be safe. She needed to be out of the water. She needed to get away from the monsters that dwelled in the water that would swallow her whole. She needed to get away.

Get away. She needed to get away. Away. Away.

Rock. Where was a rock? There had to be a rock! Where was the rock?

 _WHY WERE THERE NO ROCKS ANYWHERE? WHY COULDN'T SHE FIND ANYTHING? WHY WAS THERE ONLY WATER? WHY COULDN'T SHE FIND ANY LAND? DID LAND NO LONGER EXIST? WAS EVERYTHING OCEAN NOW? WAS EVERYTHING OCEAN AND THE THING FROM THE RIFT?_

 _WAS THIS HER WORLD NOW?_

Then Jera saw it. She saw the object from the rift move. She saw six insect leg-like protrusions convulsing and twisting, but unable to do anything. She saw the barbed texture on its appendages and the pincers at the end of each of them. She heard its soul-shattering screeching across the ocean as it thrashed about.

This thing was _alive._

She didn't even know what to make of it. It had an elongated, slimy body like a Sliggoo, except without a gooey shell on its back. Protruding out of its back were two frayed, tattered wings that seemed quite incapable of flying. On its torso were the insect legs she had seen earlier, grasping and clawing at nothing in particular. But what caught her attention the most was the head. The head, by all accounts, was nothing more than a wriggling pile of tentacles. There were no eyes or ears, nor any semblance of a mouth. It was nothing but tentacle after tentacle with a massive crater in between each tangle.

It was a frightening sight, something she couldn't wrap her mind around. It was not a Pokémon she knew of. She wasn't even sure it was a creature that was ever supposed to exist. It defied all logical understanding. It was only an impossible thing of abominable creation, incapable of being understood by anyone.

And yet, here this thing was, collapsed on top of Stardust Island, burying it completely under its eldritch mass.

It had happened so quickly. One moment, the island had been there, standing right before Jera, waiting for her to crawl onto its sandy beach. Now, not a single speck of the entire island could be seen. The entire island was now nothing more than the thing that had fallen from the rift. Worse yet, she wasn't even seeing the entire creature. The tail end of its body, if one could even call it that, was still stuck inside of the rift no matter how much the thing wriggled. She only had a fraction of the horrifying abomination of nature in her dimension, right on top of Stardust Island.

That was when it finally hit Jera; there had been Pokémon on that island. There had been an entire community thriving on that island. Merchants had been selling goods there. Adults had been settling down there to pursue a fulfilling life. _Children_ had been there, growing and taking in the world as they slowly matured.

Now every single one of them was dead, crushed beneath the eldritch monster, and it was all Jera's fault.

She could have prevented this from happening. If she had aided Glace in finding their other selves, they would have closed up the rift. Then, that abomination never would have fallen onto that island and killed every last Pokémon. But she hadn't. She had turned Glace away, and now this was the consequence of her actions.

She had killed all of those children on that island.

Jera's tentacles went numb as a despair as deep and as black as the bottom of the ocean consumed her. It dragged her down into its abysmal depths, tearing into each of her three hearts and rendering her unable to breathe. Everything around her became warped and distorted, except for that monster. No, she could perfectly see that monster. Even as everything around her blurred and became so very far away, that wriggling abomination remained as clear as day.

That thing was here because of her. She had let that thing into her dimension. She was the reason everyone on Stardust Island was nothing more than a blood splatter beneath that monster's pulsing mass.

This would happen again. That monster would wriggle free from the rift eventually and terrorize the other islands. Or another rift would tear through the sky and drop yet another one of those _things_ into her world. Maybe this one would land in the ocean and create an impact so large, it would create a world-devouring tsunami that would suck everyone into the ocean.

It would all be her fault.

Jera finally lost the will to remain afloat. She gave into the blackness consuming her soul and let it drag her down into the ocean. She didn't even struggle as the empty sea became her world. She only listened to the muffled screams of the abomination growing fainter and fainter the deeper she sank.

* * *

Glace didn't know how much time had passed by the time she had stopped crying. Her chest still felt raw, but not as much as before. Now it felt like a numbing, throbbing ache that drained her more than anything else. She wanted to cry more, but it seemed she had no tears left to shed. So all she could do was lay there in the sleeping chamber and listen to the sound of her own breathing. It wasn't difficult to do, seeing as how she was still alone.

The Weavile stared at the wall across from her. She gazed into a single crack along the wall, wondering how deep it went. It was such a fascinating little crack, a flaw in an immovable rock. A weakness so exploitable.

If that wall were a Piloswine, she'd kill it right now. She'd jump on top of it and sink her claws into its back. Or she'd claw out its eyes first. You could kill a Piloswine in a number of ways. They were the best prey you could possibly find. So warm, so meaty, so susceptible to your tricks so long as you kept quiet…

When was the last time she killed a Piloswine? How long had it been now? It had been nine years since she became that dojo master, but how long had it been between that and leaving the clan? In the time she wandered the region, had she killed a Piloswine? Had she been able to do it by herself?

Of course she could. She was the best huntress of her clan. Of course she could kill those dim-witted Piloswine all by herself. She had killed those pudgy, black-furred Raticate all by herself when they had been raiding the clan's supplies, even when the leaders told her not to. Too dangerous, they said. Too aggressive and their bite would infect you. But she had killed them anyway. Sliced them right open before they even heard her.

But the clan still didn't want her. Oh yes, she was a good huntress. Extraordinarily good, a downright prodigy. She knew how to hear the little Dedenne scurrying under the snow and how to grab them. Took Sneasel months to learn that. Took careful listening and the right amount of force in your pounce to break the snow. But not her. She knew the second they found her amongst their clan how to catch those snow-dwellers.

" _You are one of the strongest and craftiest Weavile here; I never want you to forget that. You can catch on to every lesson faster than everyone else, your ability to adapt to sudden changes in any circumstances is unparalleled, and you have an actual desire to learn and be a better Weavile. I can honestly see you succeeding me in another life. But you have one problem that'll never let that be a reality in this life, and it's something I now realize I can't fix, no matter how much I try to teach you. I don't even think_ you _can fix it."_

What had been wrong with her? What had been so problematic that the leaders had to keep her away from everyone else? Why had they refused to let her on those hunts with the other Weavile or take those Sneasel on those egg hunts?

No, no Glace knew exactly why. She had always known why. She didn't even know why she was asking. It had been the egg hunt incident with those Sneasel. Noir, Éclair, and Verglas were their names. This had been their first hunt. They had all been injured on their hunt with her. They had all been hurt because of Glace's orders. The birds had jabbed their beaks into their bodies, tearing apart their skin and their fur. All because Glace had told them to stop being afraid and to do as she said.

After that, she became a danger. Because after that, they finally realized why she could hunt so effectively. They finally realized why she never seemed to smile, even after achieving victory against a particularly fearsome foe.

" _You're a Whiteout."_

 _What's a Whiteout?_

Glace had a spasm. She nearly jolted to a sitting position, but then saw that no one was in the room with her. A second later, she realized who the voice really belonged to. The moment she did, Glace felt a seething bitterness come over her.

 _Why did you do that, Sonata?_

 _You mean ask what a Whiteout is? Because I wanna know what it is…_

 _Don't play stupid with me. Why did you make me go through your memories with that Suicune? Do you have any idea how painful that was?_

 _Oh… you saw all of that?_

 _I_ _ **lived**_ _through it. I was you and I felt_ _ **everything.**_ _I felt how happy you were to serve him and how he gave you a purpose in life. And I felt unbearable, excruciating pain when you had to leave him. It was like someone was trying to tear out my heart._

 _Glace, I swear, I didn't do that to you. I mean, I was thinking about all of that after what you said, but I never tried to make you live through it. To make you live through all of that… that's just evil._

 _You expect me to believe that when you've proven you can make me live through your memories before?_

 _Glace, really, I didn't do that. I'll admit it, I was getting mad at you earlier, but it never crossed my mind to make you live through my memories. That's just wrong on too many levels._

 _She's telling the truth, Glace. I'm not entirely sure how it happened, but she never tried to hurt you. There was no malicious intent to be felt from here._

Glace breathed in slowly as she sat up and held her head in her claws. She carefully massaged her scalp as she closed her eyes. Her heart no longer felt broken, but her head now throbbed with a small headache.

 _Fine, I'll believe both of you. But that still doesn't explain why neither of you helped me when I was begging you to make the pain stop._

 _Well you see, I didn't hear you begging for anything. After you made that remark about Downfall, I started thinking about those memories. Soon as I did that, you sort of disappeared for a second. I couldn't hear you or see you or anything. By the time I found you again, you were on the ground and staring at some wall, feeling dead._

 _You didn't hear me calling out to you?_

 _No. You were just gone. Like erased from existence._

 _Did this happen to you too, Yore?_

 _Yes. I could sense Sonata with me, but not you. You were nowhere to be found, no matter how much I searched. I couldn't feel your presence or hear your thoughts. I'm sorry I couldn't help you though, Glace. I would have helped you if I had heard you. I'm not entirely sure how I could have, but I would have aided you the best I can._

Glace opened her eyes and settled her claws in her lap. She could no longer feel the throbbing in her head, but didn't bother to stand up or do much else besides sit. She didn't have an overwhelming need to do anything. All she wanted to do was think.

Why had she lived through Sonata's memories, and how come her other selves couldn't hear her crying out in pain? Sonata did seem to be telling the truth. Even though she was willing to assimilate Jera against her will, she didn't seem like the kind to torture others. That seemed too cruel for someone as upbeat as that Noivern.

Was this a consequence of assimilating her other selves? It was true that they managed to keep their minds and memories separate from one another, but was this a sign that wouldn't be for long? Was Sonata slowly becoming Glace? Or perhaps it was the other way around?

Would Glace wake up one day and not be able to discern her own memories from Sonata's? Would she think that she used to serve Downfall and his mysterious division and that her time as a huntress was nothing more than a fever dream?

 _Well, either way, I'm sorry about how I was acting, Glace. I really don't want to assimilate Jera; I just don't know what else to do. I really don't want to disappoint our old self._

 _I know you don't. Unfortunately, it seems that we're stuck at the moment. Jera doesn't want to leave._

 _There has to be something we can do though! Something!_

 _Is there really?_

Sonata didn't respond, perhaps unable to answer the question. Glace sighed as she looked around at all of the beds. She could see how despite how disgusting they looked with how they were made of dry kelp, they were probably quite comfortable. It was most certainly more comfortable than sleeping on the rocky ground. She wondered how long it would be until the children returned here and retire for the night.

 _Hey Glace, what's a Whiteout? You were thinking about that earlier._

Glace knew she didn't have to answer the question. She had specifically told Sonata not to ask about thoughts not directed toward her. But just as Glace considered reminding Sonata of this, something came over her. Something that actually wanted to share her thoughts with the Noivern even though there was no practical reason in doing so. Glace didn't know where the feeling had come from, but she didn't bother fighting it. Changing the conversation might benefit her anyway; it could give her mind time to think of another way to convince Jera to come with her.

 _Whiteouts are Weavile or Sneasel whose firns are too active. Like some of the other Pokémon types, we ice-types have a special organ in our bodies called firns. It's what makes it possible for us to make ice and to keep us from getting cold. I can't remember exactly how it works, but I believe it has something to do with lowering our body temperature as well as taking the heat out of the atmosphere. But as a consequence of this, we tend to lose the ability to feel emotions when our firn is active. The chemicals that our firn puts into our body make it so we don't actually have emotions. Normally this isn't a concern since we can always make our firn stop flooding these chemicals into our bodies, but not to Whiteouts. Whiteouts have something wrong with their firns so that it's active even when it doesn't need to be. They can never shut it off. Because of that, they might not feel their emotions as strongly as everyone else, or might not even feel them at all._

 _Huh, so ice-types in your dimension have an organ that lets you make ice. You even gave it a name. In my dimension, I think they just have some weird affinity with the cold, like the dark-types do with darkness and the night and all. And what happens to Whiteouts in your clan?_

 _Depends. If their firn is extremely active and it makes them a threat to everyone else, we'll execute them. If they're not too dangerous but still have the potential to be later on, then the clan will keep that Whiteout somewhere secluded and secure and keep an eye on them. They don't let that Whiteout participate in any activities such as hunting or training. They only let the Whiteout out during meals and for any meetings. Or for tests to see if the Whiteout isn't as dangerous as they thought._

 _That sounds awful, just getting locked away or even killed all because you can't feel emotions._

 _Whiteouts are dangerous. The very first Whiteout in my clan attacked one of his pack mates when they were on a hunt together. Slashed him right across the face and made him go blind in one eye. And his reason for doing that? It was because his pack mate wouldn't share a portion of a Glaceon that they had just killed._

 _Wow. All just because they wanted more food?_

 _Yeah. So after the leaders figured out exactly what was wrong with him, they took measures to make sure any future Whiteouts wouldn't hurt anyone. Of course, sometimes they weren't fast enough._

 _Is what happened with those Sneasel on that egg hunt gone wrong what made your clan realize you were a Whiteout too?_

 _... Yeah. It was. Said what I did sounded too much like something a Whiteout would do. But they didn't know for sure. They considered maybe I was just being a bad leader._

 _But they kept you from everyone else and kept monitoring you anyway, like you actually were a Whiteout._

 _Yeah. They did._

 _And then… they banished you._

 _No, they didn't._

 _Wait what? But you were at that dojo when I came to get you. You weren't with any Weavile al all._

Glace was now in a cave so similar to the cavern's sleeping chamber. She could see the sun beginning its descent from the mouth of the cavern, watching as the shadows of night crept toward her. She had been locked up and monitored like this for a good month now. She didn't know how much longer it would last. Maybe she'd always be secluded from the others, always deemed a Whiteout. If she truly wasn't a danger anymore, her leaders would have released her already. She doubted a month was enough time to determine how active her firn was and how much it influenced her behaviors.

She admitted that she felt a strange hollowness inside of her most of the time. She did feel something sometimes, like a rush of energy or a flicker of euphoria the second she spotted her prey, but she never seemed nearly as expressive as the others. The others would always be smiling the moment they spotted their prey and laughing giddily the moment they killed the Pokémon. Even as a hatchling, Glace could never remember being as rambunctious as the others. But did that really mean she was a Whiteout? Could she just be someone more collected and rational-minded than everyone else?

Glace saw a flicker of movement at the cave entrance. She locked her sights onto the movement and realized it was another Weavile, her main mentor. The one who originally told her she was a Whiteout. Veneur, everyone called him. One of the strongest Weavile there were, if you didn't count the clan leaders. Could kill a Mamoswine in five seconds.

He seemed to be smiling, but it wasn't the smile Glace was used to. It was a forced smile, a flimsy mask to give Glace false comfort. She dug her claws into the rock beneath her as Veneur drew closer.

" _Hello Glace. Are you doing well?"_

" _About as well as I can be when I'm locked up in here."_

" _I suppose that's true."_

Veneur paused a moment. Something flickered in his eyes.

" _Glace, you know that you were one of my best students, correct? You know that I honestly hoped you would take my place after I died, don't you?"_

" _You told me something similar before you said I was a Whiteout, yes."_

" _Good. I hoped that you remembered that. I wanted you to remember that despite everything, you always have been and always will be one of the best Weavile I've had the opportunity to train. I know it can be difficult to remember that in these circumstances you're in."_

" _Nobody's ever letting me out of here, are they? You're all going to keep me in any enclosure you come across."_

" _Actually, that's what I came here to talk to you about. The clan leaders had a meeting and they finally decided that you no longer need to stay locked away."_

Glace couldn't believe she was hearing. She honestly felt that she had misheard everything that Veneur had just said.

" _You mean I don't have to stay here anymore? I can be free?"_

" _Yes. You're finally free."_

So she hadn't misheard Veneur. She actually was free. She was no longer deemed a danger to her clan. She could be with them again and be the huntress she was supposed to be.

Glace felt the honest need to smile as soon as she heard that. She felt the relief and the warmth in her chest that could only be expressed as a sigh. She was free! She could be a true Weavile again!

But just before she could express her gratitude, Glace saw Veneur's face again. She saw the fake smile again. Except this time, there were cracks in that smile. Now Glace could see something else in Veneur's face. Something dark and somber. Something that instantly smothered any semblance of Glace's happiness and made all of her muscles tense.

Glace somersaulted out of the way just as Veneur stabbed the spot where she once stood with his claws. She quickly righted herself up and looked over at the Weavile. She could already see him turning toward her, his claws poised to strike. Claws that would slice her open without hesitation.

Glace understood now. Veneur wanted to free her alright. He wanted to free her from this monotonous life of seclusion. However, not in the way Glace wanted. No, he wanted to give her the ultimate freedom, freedom from life itself.

Death.

Veneur struck at her again as a black blur. He tackled Glace down and jammed his claws down at her head. Glace grabbed his wrist just as the claws were to pierce her eyes and swiftly kicked her foot into his stomach. She sent him flying over her shoulder and crashing into the cave wall right behind them.

 _ **You can't die here. You have to survive.**_

 _ **Fight. Fight Glace.**_

She didn't know whose voice that was in her head. She didn't know where it had come from. She thought maybe it was her firn talking to her. Maybe Whiteout's firns were so strong that it actually influenced their thoughts. It didn't matter though. The voice was right.

Suddenly she didn't care that she could never be a huntress for her clan. Suddenly she didn't care that she had been secluded for who knew how long. She didn't even care that Veneur was attacking her. Everything disappeared, bit by bit until only one thought remained.

She had to live, no matter what.

She had to _survive_.

Glace scurried to her feet and faced her foe. He lay collapsed against the wall, having just hit the ground with a loud thud. But he would be up again soon. He would strike her again. He would kill her. There was only one way out of this.

 _ **Survive.**_

Glace drew her claws as a hiss escaped from the back of her throat. Then, without a second thought, she lunged at her killer.

Glace was suddenly back in the real world, back in Jera's cavern. The Weavile held her head as an intense feeling of vertigo overcame her. She sighed deeply as she rubbed at her temples with the blunt ends of her claws. She couldn't remember the last time she had ever thought about what happened between her and Veneur. She had suppressed it so long ago, constantly pushing it away into the darkness of her mind whenever it dared to surface.

 _So that's what it was… you killed that Weavile before he could kill you. And then you escaped._

It took Glace a moment to realize that was Sonata talking to her. She had almost forgotten that the two of them had been having a conversation prior to the sudden flashback.

 _He was the only one I killed, thankfully, even if he was my mentor. After he was dead, I ran out of the cave before anyone even knew what happened and fled far away. But I really wish I didn't have to kill anybody. It was just when Veneur attacked me… it was like I became a feral. I couldn't stop myself from killing him. It was as though someone took over me. It didn't actually occur me that I had killed him until I woke up the next day._

 _Wow. No wonder why you hate talking about your past. I'm sorry that I kept asking you about it… I should have just left it alone. Especially considering my own time in my own dimension._

 _It seems we're even then. I know all about your past and now you know all about my past. Neither one of us wanted to talk about what happened to us._

 _Yeah but mine wasn't nearly as bad as yours. I didn't kill anyone that I used to know…_

 _It doesn't matter. I did what I did and nothing can ever change it. It doesn't make much of a difference now anyway. I never belonged in my dimension in the first place. If anything, me leaving my clan made it easier for me to be willing to go with you. If I had been that huntress or mentor I wanted to be in my dimension, I probably never would have left. I would have been like Jera, latched onto responsibilities that I was never supposed to have._

It was with this thought that Glace heard a strange squelching sound echoing throughout the cavern. She only had to glance at the room's entrance to see what it was. The moment she did, Glace felt her skin crawl.

It was Jera, crawling toward her.

Jera had specifically said that she never wanted to see Glace again. Glace could remember how livid that Octillery had been the last time she spoke. She honestly wouldn't put it past Jera to strangle her right then and there for not listening to her.

But just as Glace was to consider fleeing, she saw that something wasn't right about Jera. She no longer had that hostile aura to her. There seemed to be something else, something that reminded her of how Yore appeared when he had returned to the watchtower after he disappeared for most of the day.

Glace watched Jera draw closer until only a few feet of space rested between them. The Octillery didn't even keep eye contact with Glace, instead averting her gaze and looking at anything except Glace, whether it be her tentacles, something behind the Weavile, or the beds surrounding them.

"I want to help you find the others," Jera finally said after a time.

Glace could only barely keep her impassive frown on her face. She imagined Jera could still see the cracks in her façade however. She could feel it breaking a bit already.

"I know I said I didn't want to help you before," Jera then said. "I honestly do want to stay here and protect all of the children. It's my calling. However, I realize now that I can't actually save all of the children if I stay here. That rift… it won't allow me to. If I stay here, it's only going to allow more of those _things_ to come here and they'll…"

"Jera, what things are you talking about?"

"Something fell out of that rift when I was out in the ocean. It fell out of the rift and it… it landed on an island and killed everyone on it. I don't know what it was. It was so massive in size… it was the size of the island itself. And it… it had no eyes or mouth. But it could scream, Glace. It could _scream_ and when you heard it scream, you suddenly found yourself in the deepest of your worst nightmares. Reality comes undone and you find yourself nowhere and everywhere at once with that thing to keep you company as its screams told you…"

Jera tightened her tentacles in toward her body as she trembled. Glace even thought she saw the faintest traces of tears in her eyes. Or at least, Glace thought they were tears. Maybe Octillery couldn't actually cry. Maybe it was something else.

 _Sonata, what is Jera talking about?_

 _I don't know. I mean, I don't anything is supposed to fall through the dimensional tears. But then again, a bunch of fire came out of the rift in my dimension and set that whole forest on fire._

 _Fires and this thing Jera is talking about aren't the same._

 _Yeah I know. But I mean, it's pretty obvious she's telling the truth. And she's not insane either._

 _If I may interrupt. Don't both of you believe that the dimensional tear is something that destroys the barriers between all of the dimensions?_

 _Yeah, that's how our old self explained it to me. Said it was a hole that would make all of the dimensions collapse on each other because there'd be nothing keeping them apart anymore. Or well, that's what it looked like in my vision._

 _I see. Well then, have you considered that perhaps these rifts are allowing access to other realms?_

 _What…?_

 _If the barriers between all of the dimensions are being destroyed, then it would make sense that the dimensions could have access to one another in the process. So, perhaps what Jera saw was a creature from another realm. A realm, I think, that could be a nightmarish, incomprehensible place with inhabitants just as grotesque._

 _Huh. You know, that would actually make a lot of sense, Yore. Maybe the fire that got put into my dimension was from another fire in some other dimension? Or just from a dimension that's always on fire…_

Glace sighed deeply. She could still see Jera trembling at the thought of that frightening creature. And though part of Glace was quite curious to know what she could have possibly seen that could break such a strong, resilient Pokémon, Glace knew she couldn't. She knew she would probably have her own mind broken as well. She would probably have her entire notion of reality torn apart, more so than it had been already. And also… she just couldn't will herself to go. She didn't want to see the supposed destruction that the monster brought. She didn't want to meet something that she could do nothing to stop.

"Jera, look," Glace said as gently as she could manage. "If we close up the rift, that thing will disappear. You won't ever have to see it again. No one ever has to die because of that thing ever again."

"I know. I know," Jera said quietly as the shaking slowly went away. "That's why I came here to find you. I understand why I can't stay here anymore."

"Alright. I'm glad you're able to understand, Jera. I'm… I'm sorry that you had to see that creature though and what it did. I never expected that would happen."

Jera didn't say anything. She only crawled away from Glace and wandered over to one of the beds. She tangled the kelp in her arms, all the while eying it with a somber gaze.

"You only have one fragment left to find before you reunite with your other selves, correct?" Jera asked.

"Yeah," Glace said with a nod. "Then we'll all decide what to do with the last two fragments left."

"Let me find the last two fragments for you then. I'll take that burden away from all of you."

 _Oh. Well, this is new. I thought she'd just want to be assimilated._

 _We can let her two of the fragments, can't we? There are at least two left, aren't there?_

 _Well yeah, but I mean… what if she's just saying all of that so she can run away where we can never find her?_

 _I don't think she'll do that. She knows how important this is now. Whatever she saw out in the ocean, it changed her. She'll be just as diligent as us._

 _Alright, I guess it can't hurt. Would save us some time anyway._

"Will you let me find those two fragments for you?" Jera asked again.

"Yeah, of course," Glace replied quickly. "Of course. I'll give you all of the information you need about them and teach you how to travel between the dimensions."

Jera nodded once, and then resumed playing with the seaweed bed.

"Should I tell you about the others now?"

"I want to say goodbye to the children here first. If I really am going to leave forever, I want to at least see their faces one last time and provide them closure. I'd rather not disappear from their lives so abruptly."

"You're free to do that. I'll be in the dining area. Whenever you're done with the children, just come on by and I'll teach you everything you need to know. Then, you and I can go our separate ways until all of the fragments have been found."

"Thank you, Glace. I won't be long."

Glace nodded, and then made her way out of the chamber. Once again, she had convinced another fragment to aid her and Sonata on their quest to reunite all of the fragments. Once again she was one step closer to being her old self. But it didn't feel the same as when she had after her success with Yore. She felt accomplished back then. Happy that everything was moving along.

But now… now, she didn't feel that. She only had questions. Questions that made a dark feeling crawl over her. Questions that no one should ever have. Namely…

Were there really only Pokémon in all of the dimensions Glace had to travel to, or were there other things out there that she could never hope to understand?

* * *

Glace finally left, and Jera found herself all alone in the sleeping chamber. She knew that in a few minutes Serenity or one of the caregivers would bring the children here. It was almost their bedtime, and they would most certainly want a story. Despite it not being an easy task to see the sun, they all knew when it was time to sleep and hear their story. If you spent enough time in the cavern, you eventually grew a new perception of time, one where you didn't need the sun to understand the time. At least, that's how Jera saw it.

Jera crawled around each and every one of the beds. She knew who belonged to each and every one of these beds. This bed right here, this was Henry's. She could tell because it had some of his feathers mixed up in the kelp. And this one, this one was Lya's. She could tell because it was far messier than all of the other beds. Lya always tossed and turned in her sleep as thought she were in a perpetual nightmare. Then this one, this one was Daisy's. Daisy's bed was always the flattest because she liked the feel of the ground, but still wanted something between her and the ground so she couldn't get cold.

Jera knew each and every one of these beds. She knew all of the children sleeping in these beds, whether it be for a few days or years. She knew each of their names, their favorite fruits, their favorite stories, their dreams, which ones needed a lullaby to soothe them to sleep, and so on. She knew all of her children. They were her entire life, the aspect of her life that she cherished above all else.

And now she had to let every single one of them go.

Jera felt the familiar ache at that thought.

She knew she didn't have to leave. She knew deep down, she could always stay here and never go anywhere. She could remain with the children forever and save even more until the day she died. But she couldn't. Not after what she saw. Not after seeing that _thing_ and all its incompressible, unknowable…

Jera shook her head. No, she couldn't think about the thing anymore. She would go insane if she continued to dwell in the thought. She was in the cavern for one purpose and one purpose only. And no matter how much it hurt, she had to fulfill that purpose.

"Mama Jera!"

Jera felt something tackle her from behind. However, because it was so light-weight, it didn't even move Jera an inch. The Octillery looked behind her to find Aqua once again entangled in her tentacles and nuzzling her. Jera gently caressed the top of the Wooper's head with an arm.

"Hello Aqua," Jera said with a beaming gaze.

"I missed you, Mama Jera."

"I know you did, Aqua. I know."

"Mama Jera!"

Now multiple little voices screamed her name. Jera looked up to find all of the children rushing toward her, Serenity dragging herself along right behind them. Her hearts both radiated with joy and broke at the same time.

She watched all of the children close in on her until the completely encircled her like a school of Remoraid. The little Scraggy she had saved before Aqua came rushing over to Jera's side and held one of her tentacles close to him in a sort of awkward hug.

Jera knew the children would start bombarding with her questions like they always did. She knew with their excitable nature, they couldn't help but cuddle with her and ask her all of the questions they had in their curious little minds. Normally, she would let them. She liked to hear each of their questions. She liked to know what questions they had about the world and what they had learned for the day. She liked their warmth against her.

But today...

"Children, there's something I need to tell you," Jera said.

All of the children looked up at her, all of their giddy smiles now replaced with earnest. They hung on her every word. Even Serenity, the adult that she was now, watched Jera with a similar sort of awe.

"It pains me to say this… but I'm afraid that I can't stay here anymore," Jera said as her hearts grew heavier and heavier. "I have to go."

"Go? You mean like on another trip to find another brother or sister?" Daisy asked.

"No, as in… I'm not coming back for a long time, quite possibly never. I'm not sure at the moment."

The reaction Jera dreaded most suddenly became a reality. All of the children before her instantly leapt at her and clung to her with all their might. Jera latched onto the ground as firmly as she could as the children sank their faces into her.

"Mama Jera, why do you have to leave? Why do you have to go?"

"Mama Jera, you said that you'd always be here for us! You promised that you'd be here until we wanted to leave!"

"Mama Jera, I don't want you to go! I don't want you to leave!"

"Mama Jera, please don't leave me!"

"I don't wanna say goodbye, Mama Jera!"

"Mama Jera, I love you! Please don't go!"

"Stay here forever like you said you would, Mama Jera!"

Each and every single one of their words pierced her hearts like tiny arrows. She could practically feel her insides bleeding away as all of the children begged her and pleaded with her and pawed at her. This was far greater than any pain she had ever felt. Far greater than the Sharpedo bite. Far greater than having to watch her grown children take their leave from the cavern after raising them for so many years. Far greater than even watching the abomination from the rift crush the entirety of Stardust Island.

Jera looked over at Serenity to find she was the only one who had kept her distance from the Octillery. However, her bewildered stare pained Jera just as equally as all of these now crying, wailing little ones.

"Jera, what do you mean?" Serenity asked, hardly masking her frailty.

"I'm leaving," Jera verified, trying not to let the sorrow into her voice. "Something happened and… I have to go take care of something elsewhere. There's no other way; I have to go away."

"What happened, Jera? I'm sure I could help you with whatever's happened. You don't have to leave me and all of the children to take care of your problem. It… it can't be that drastic."

"Unfortunately, it can be, and worse yet, I'm the only one who can solve the problem."

Jera looked down at each of the children. She could smell their tears leaking from their eyes and she could feel the deep, heaving breaths all of them made. Even Topaz, quite incapable of any of that, emitted such a pained, distraught aura that made Jera's head ache.

"I'm sorry, Serenity. I honestly am. If there had been any other way, I would have taken it. Please… take care of these children in my absence, will you?"

"Jera…"

"Serenity, please. Please promise me that you'll provide the children the love and support that I always gave you. If you can do that for me, then it would make all of this a little bit easier for everyone."

"… I promise, Jera. I'll do everything I can for the little ones."

The Primarina smiled, but Jera knew it was a forced one. She could see how the corners of her mouth twitched. And though Jera wanted to take back everything she said, to say that all of this was nothing more than a practical joke, she knew she couldn't.

For the sake of all the helpless and suffering children who had yet to be found… there was only way to save them.

"Children, there's something I want to tell you before I go," Jera said.

All of the children glanced up at the Octillery with teary eyes. That was all she could see of them; they still kept the rest of their faces buried in her tentacles. Jera almost couldn't look at any of them in such a pitiful state.

But she knew everything would be okay now. Though she couldn't be with these children anymore, Serenity would care for them. The other caregivers would as well. They would all grow into happy, functional adults. They would be safe.

"Every time I brought one of you home, I promised to keep you happy and cherish the time we spent together. Watching as my children come of age and leave me forever hurts more as I grow older. I always told myself that giving you futures was worth the pain, but now I need to ensure that you all live to see those futures."

Jera beamed at each and every one of her children. All of the children she had loved with all her hearts. All of the children who she was eternally gratefully she had saved.

Jera gently pried each of the children from her. Not a single one resisted her, not even Aqua. They only remained still and frail as she set them down, bodies still trembling and tears still running down their cheeks. Some of them held each other, but none rushed back to Jera. All of them only watched her, silent, but understanding everything.

Jera couldn't have been more proud of them.

"Until we meet again."

Jera glanced over all of her beloved children one more time, and then crawled away to an uncertain future.


	9. Come Play My Game

Fear is such a fascinating little thing.

Fear is what prompts you to scream when that Lampent appears in that dark alley you know you shouldn't be wandering through all alone. Fear is what makes it impossible for you to confess your love to that one creature you adore so very much. Fear is the reason that you can't be in the darkness without thinking that maybe there's a hungry Mightyena lurking about.

Fear is the oldest, most primal concept known to all mortals. Long before they ever had happiness or pain, they had fear. Without fear, they would have no reason to flee from the monstrous creatures with jagged teeth and wicked claws. Without fear, every single mortal would live so carelessly and die long before they could ever reproduce.

It's a beautiful emotion or chemical reaction, whatever the mortals want to call it. They all have such amusing interpretations of the concept as old as life itself.

And yet, even though it's so undeniably useful, all sentient creatures despise it. They hide from it, tossing it into the darkness of their minds and burying it under layers and layers of thoughts. They want to survive without this ancient concept in their lives, somehow thinking that it will make everything better. Because after all, they no longer have a reason to cherish fear. They are no longer feral creatures roaming about, relying on it to guide them away from potential danger. No, they live in safe, civil societies now where fear only serves as a detriment. Sure, there are those occasional creatures or situations that would be dangerous and they need to stay wary of them, but they don't need fear for that. They logically know to stay away from those things.

Fear is something to evolve out of.

What a joke.

A Sableye with cracked gemstones strolled through a drab forest of dead trees, all of these thoughts circling through her mind so quickly that it almost made her head spin. It didn't matter though; she had been in this forest far too many times. She practically knew the entire place like the back of her hand. She was even sure she could find her way through it blindfolded. Even though all of the barren trees seemed exactly the same, she couldn't see more than a few feet in front of her thanks to the perpetual thick fog shrouding the forest, and could not spot a single speck of green sprouting out of the equally drab ground, she knew where to go.

It wasn't that difficult after you had travelled through the forest for the rough equivalent of a few dozen centuries. Or was it millennia now? She could honestly never remember; only mortals gave their lifespan any attention. And not only that, but then taking into the account that she was a different age depending on who she spoke with… she could be anywhere between an infant to as old as existence itself.

There was a real answer to that question of course, but not one she ever cared for. She was who she was, and that was a Sableye who could be however old she wanted to be. And right now, she decided she was a few dozen centuries old. That seemed like a good age for her. She'd be ancient and hold the knowledge of the infinities this way, just like the nightmarish, incomprehensible creatures so many mortals dreaded.

"Hey, you know that I'm talking to you, right?"

Back into the forest that Sableye went. Back into the dull reality that she didn't want to partake in at the moment. No more steeping in the darkness every mortal futilely hid from.

She looked over at her side to see a Mismagius drifting through the air alongside her, shooting her an exasperated glare. She could even see her wispy, tassel-like appendages streaming through the air a little more vigorously than they normally did.

"Yeah I know you are," the Sableye said nonchalantly.

"But you haven't been saying anything," the Mismagius stated in a low tone. "You just keep staring forward with that weird glow in your eyes."

"I was?"

"Yeah, you were."

"Oh. Well, I was just thinking about things."

"Like what exactly?"

"About why all those mortals in those other dimensions don't care for fear anymore. It's like they think they're all a bunch of ferals if they hold onto fear. Like they should be ashamed for being scared. It's a stupid thought process that I can't stand."

"They're like that because nobody likes to think that they're going to die. You know that's why you get scared, right? You're not supposed to like being scared. You have fear so that you won't die…"

"So what? That moment you feel like you're going to die is the only real way you can ever feel completely _alive_. It's a beautiful juxtaposition or paradox or whatever you call it."

"That's not beautiful; that's just wrong on too many levels."

The Sableye frowned hard. Of course she had to make a remark like that. Of course she would immediately deem that philosophy depraved.

"Let's not talk about this anymore," the Mismagius then said with a shake of her head. "Let's talk about what I was trying to talk to you about before you decided to get lost in your thoughts."

"You mean the stupid party," the Sableye remarked bitterly.

"Yeah. The party."

"Why are we talking about this?"

"Because I wanted to talk about what we could do at the party before the welcoming ceremony."

"Why? What's the point? Every single party here is exactly the same."

"Because I thought that maybe we can do something different this time around. I don't know, something new and exciting. Like maybe you, me, Zel, and Adam can all get together for once. I don't remember the last time all four of us were in the same place. Someone's always off feeding in another dimension."

"Well yeah, because you guys use the worst feeding methods ever. You guys wouldn't have to eat so much if you just do what I do. We could all hang out together way more often if you all copy me."

The Mismagius's eyes glimmered with a dark light.

"Your methods. Your sick methods," the Mismagius spat. "I'm surprised no one has banned you from using them."

"Because they get the job done," the Sableye insisted with a grin. "I get food for a long time and don't have to go on feeding trips nearly as often as the rest of you. Why ban them if they're effective? Besides, I remember you did do them for a while when we first met. I think you even enjoyed it."

"But I don't anymore because I realized how utterly wrong they are. I'm not doing them ever again, Ker. You can even tell me that I only have to copy your method one time and I don't have to eat for a million years and I _still_ won't do it."

"Well of course you wouldn't. A million years doesn't mean anything here."

"You get what I mean. I'm not stooping back to that level."

"Fine, keep being a wimp just like Adam and Zel and basically everyone else in this dimension. See if I care."

The Mismagius shot Ker a nasty glare and then abruptly turned away from her. Ker could taste the Mismagius's disgust and contempt flowing in the air around the two of them. It had an acrid taste that Ker had to resist gagging at.

Why did Bell have to be this way every time she brought up how to properly feed? Why did she have to act like Ker just admitted she had just collapsed an entire dimension and killed everyone inside?

There was nothing wrong with Ker's feeding methods, and Bell had known that in beginning. But then for some reason, she suddenly decided it was wrong. Maybe it was some other ghost Ker didn't know about. Maybe someone brainwashed her. Maybe this mystery ghost convinced her that Ker was a monster when it came to eating and that Bell was also a monster for copying Ker.

"Oh look, we're finally here," the Mismagius said. "It's about time."

Reality flooded back into Ker's vision. There, only about twenty paces away, lay a glade with trees glimmering ethereal lights of all shades. Hundreds of beings of all sorts congregated in the midst of that glade. Some were "ghost-types" just like Ker, some were humans, and then there were even some that were neither, like the eldritch monstrosities that defied all logic and existed in that equally incomprehensible realm. Whatever everyone was, they all that held a ghastly appearance that made sure everyone was on a similarly twisted level. Of course, there were always those who outshined everyone else in the unnerving department, such as this bat-like demon Ker always saw flying around with three of its jaws stacked on top of one another, but everyone at least had something remotely unsettling and wraith-like about them.

Because of how little proximity there was between all the creatures, the great gathering more resembled a wriggling blob of insidious colors than anything else. Loud, aggressive music seemed to resonate from the very center of the mass like a pounding heartbeat.

"There's no way we're going to find Adam and Zel in that mess before Grim starts the welcoming ceremony," Ker grumbled.

"Don't worry, I talked to both of them earlier," the Mismagius stated with a sly grin. "I told them to meet us at the tallest red tree. The only hard part is making our way through the crowd without getting lost."

"You mean for _me_. You can just float over all of them."

"I can carry you if you really wanted to."

"Nope, not happening. That'll look silly. I'd rather just struggle my way through the pulsing, writhing tangle of souls getting drunk off the ambiance."

"Well alright… it's your choice."

The two entered the glade. Now that Ker was much closer to the mass gathering, she could better discern between the different ghosts. Some of them swayed to the sound of the music in a melodious rhythm while others awkwardly fumbled about. Some ghosts remained captivated in conversations with those surrounding them, oblivious to all others in the vicinity. Others swooped in and out of the crowd, their laughter mixing with the exhilarating beat of the music. It was a great big mess of activity that seemed treacherous to navigate through.

But Ker didn't fret. She could see the gaps between each of the ghosts' forms, places for her to squeeze through. It would still be a tight squeeze, but thankfully she was a small ghost to begin with. Ker peered over the crowd until she could spot the red tree her friend spoke of. It stood towards the very back of the crowd, perhaps the furthest tree away from her. Ker would have sighed if she had lungs.

"Pick the hardest tree to get to, Bell. Brilliant idea," Ker said dryly.

"Just get to the tree," the Mismagius said.

Bell then swooped over the crowd, leaving the Sableye behind. Ker kept her gaze on the crowd a moment longer, and then forced her way into the shuddering mass of ghosts. The moment she merged into the crowd she could taste the euphoria in the atmosphere. Normally she wouldn't mind this sort of atmosphere. It had a sweet-sour taste to it, something that instantly that washed away the bitterness of Bell's contempt. But with so many souls in the vicinity all sharing the same feeling, it now felt like she was biting into a lemon. She could feel something crawling over her form and her tongue wanted to twist in on itself.

She would definitely need to leave this party after the welcoming ceremony ended. She needed something pleasant to wipe away this terrible taste from her mouth. Besides, it was probably best she go on another feeding trip soon anyway. She hadn't eaten in quite some time. Her thoughts already felt harder to grab at. Who knew how much longer it would take until she felt heavy and tied down?

Ker continued making her way through the crowd. She pushed past every single ghost that stood in her way with her claws. Some of the ghosts cursed at her when she moved them aside or broke apart their intimate activities, but she ignored them and kept going.

Eventually, Ker exited the crowd and arrived at the glowing red tree. She quickly noticed Bell hovering near its base along with a Drifloon and Banette. Ker joined them as soon as she saw them.

"There you are, Ker," the Drifloon said. "We were wondering when you would get out of that crowd."

"Well here I am," Ker said. "And here are you guys."

"It's been a while since I've seen you," the Banette then said to her with a smile. "How have you been doing?"

"Same old same old," Ker said with a shrug. "You know, hanging around here with Bell or Zel, and then going out to the other dimensions to feed."

"Do you know any dimensions that are good feeding grounds? None of the dimensions I normally go to feed me as much. I still feel hungry even after I find twelve mortals. I think too many ghosts are going to my dimensions and they're desensitizing all of the mortals there."

"All of them are good places. You just need to be more creative than popping out of a dark alley and spooking mortals. That gets old real fast."

"It shouldn't! There's an infinite amount of dimensions to choose from. There has to be at least one where I can keep my routine the same."

"Well there's not. You just need to change. You need to start copying me and you'll get all the food you want from literally anyone."

"No you don't, Adam," Bell then said with a frown. "Come with me when I go feeding and I'll show you a good dimension to visit. It's this one full of children that never age and they're easy to scare. Almost requires zero effort."

"Really? That sounds perfect!" the Banette said as he clapped his paws together. "Is it popular?"

"Surprisingly no," Bell replied. "I never see anyone when I go there."

"Perfect, just the place for me."

"But your food won't taste as good if you go there," Ker then cut in. "I've been there and let me tell you, children don't taste as good as adults. There's something wrong with their emotions that make them too strong. It's adults you want. Their desperate attempts to rationalize everything while terrified out of their minds makes the perfect flavor."

"Yeah, but adults are difficult to work with," Adam said. "It's _because_ they rationalize everything that it's so hard to get food from them."

"Well that's why you have to mess with them real bad to get them scared. You got to do something so surreal and so bizarre that they can't explain it away with logic. It's a bit of an effort, but trust me, it's worth it in the end."

"Like what?" the Drifloon then asked. "What do you do to adults that makes them scared?"

Ker couldn't stop herself from smiling manically. Oh, she loved answering this question. Nothing made her whole form jitter with as much exhilaration as that. Well, except maybe actually going out and _acting_ on it, but this was almost just as good.

"Dig deep into their heads and expose their worst fears," Ker said as her eyes emitted otherworldly light. "Get rid of the illusion that they have control. Make them realize that they don't own anything. Make them realize how powerless they really are to the whims of chance and how easily you can strip everything they hold dear away. Make them remember that they're going to die one day and everyone will slowly forget they ever existed. Force them to know that they understand absolutely nothing about everything around them. Make them realize that they're nothing more than a meaningless speck in the infinity that is all of the universes that ever have and ever will exist for the rest of eternity."

Zel seemed at a loss, as though Ker had sucked all of his life energy right out of him. All of the riveting energy coursing through Ker died as her gemstones dimmed.

"What? That's what you do," she said as she shot him a bitter frown. "You make them realize how so very weak they really are."

Zel only nodded in response, muttering something that Ker couldn't understand from her distance. Ker looked at her other friends to see that they too weren't impressed. Adam awkwardly fidgeted in place and twiddled his claws around one another. Bell wore the exact same exasperated glare that she had been giving Ker earlier. Any ghosts who happened to be near her slowly retreated, refusing to make any sort of eye contact with the Sableye.

Ker had to resist abandoning her friends right there and throwing herself back into the crowd. At least there the sour flavor in the air was tolerable. Here, in front of her speechless friends, she could taste only metal and acridity. It burned at her insides and sapped away her very livelihood. If she had an actual body, she was sure this would have been the same as ingesting cyanide.

Why had she even bothered telling them this? Bell had contaminated both Adam and Zel with her disgust a Ker's methods. They all found her to be a downright demon when it came to eating. She couldn't think of a single memory where any of them had been pleased after hearing of her feats in the other dimensions. Well, except for Bell before she suddenly decided Ker was evil.

"There's a dimension you can go to full of ghost-like beings that everyone is already terrified of," Bell then said to Adam, erasing the putrid taste from the air. "You can practically show up at night in front of anyone and you'll get all the food you need. No one ever gets desensitized to the ghosts there."

"Yeah, I think I'll do just that," the Banette said with a small nod. "Can you show me where it is after the party?"

"Of course," Bell said with a warm smile.

"And me too!" Zel said as he swung his arms around. "I want to go too! It sounds like a great place."

"You can come along," Bell assured. "We can all go. There'd be plenty of food for everyone."

"Yeah! It'll be lots of fun!" Zel cheered.

The three then continued to talk amongst each other, discussing the dimension in great detail and their plans for exploring it. Ker had been to that dimension a few times in the past. Bell was right; it was very easy to obtain food there. The dimension was practically heaven for every single ghost in this dimension. However, Ker had grown rather bored of it after a while. The food was plenty fine, delicious even, but it was just too easy to get a meal there. Not only that, but their fear all tasted the same. There was no variety to be reaped from that dimension's denizens.

Ker didn't know if she wanted to go with her friends to that dimension when that was so. She wasn't even sure if they wanted her to go with them either. They didn't seem to be including her in their conversation or giving her any glances.

If they didn't want her to go with them, then fine. She would go somewhere by herself. Being alone never bothered her unlike most creatures she knew, whether they were ghosts or mortals.

Of course, that was another deep, primal fear of every living creature; to be utterly alone in a large and empty world. To be alone meant that you would have nothing but the thoughts in your head to keep you company. You'd have no one to provide stimuli and should you find yourself dying, you would die knowing that not a single creature ever knew that you were slipping away or even cared. In the end, you knew you meant being alone meant an existence without purpose, a life without being understood or loved.

Loneliness is a life of pure nothingness, an entire existence living in the abyss you will never crawl out of no matter how many times you try.

So of course anyone would want to avoid loneliness. They'd do _anything_ to avoid even the very thought of being without company, even surround themselves with others that they despised at all times.

And that was exactly why Ker loved loneliness and everything that it stood for.

" _ **The welcoming ceremony is ready to begin. Everyone congregate at the white trees."**_

Ker recognized that voice resonating in her mind. That was Grim's voice, the Dusknoir that organized this party in the first place. She looked around her to see that everyone had ceased their activities and creeping toward the white trees close by. She could no longer hear the music that had been blaring so loudly throughout the glade.

Ker looked back at friends to see that they were already following after everyone else. The Sableye hurried after them.

Moments later, Ker and her friends joined the rest of the crowd before two large ivory trees that seemed to pierce the murky sky. They illuminated with a wraithlike power that reminded Ker of the light that her gemstones gave off, except more potent. In some ways, the light almost seemed alive with how it seemed to flicker and brighten every so often for seemingly no reason.

Ker forced herself to the front of the crowd. Though she didn't exactly care for this part of the party, she did have to admit that she curious to know who this ceremony was for. Perhaps it was for a Pokémon this time? Maybe they would be a Sableye like her even? There weren't many Sableye in this dimension and the ones that she did know were complete loners. She had always hoped that at least one Sableye would be even remotely social and not spend all its time hidden in the darkest caverns of the dimension. It would be nice to have another Sableye to talk to.

When Ker managed to get to the front after much pushing and shoving, she found two ghosts hovering before the large crowd. The first one Ker spotted was Grim, if only because of his sheer size and the gaping maw on his stomach. Grim was a very interesting sort of Dusknoir. Though certainly not the only Dusknoir in the entire realm, he was the one that everyone immediately thought of when his species came to mind. No one knew how long he had served in the dimension, but with that all-knowing glimmer that always seemed present in his eye, Ker imagined he had been there since the dimension's very conception. Even now he seemed like an ancient deity before the great mass of ghosts with how he towered over so many of them.

The other Pokémon before her was a particularly frail Chandelure. Ker was very quick to notice that this wasn't just because he was right beside mighty Grim. His purple soul fire didn't burn as intensely as other Chandelure's in the vicinity; they more resembled dying candlelight than blazing flames. Even the baleful fire burning within his dome form proved to be pitiful; she couldn't hear it roaring in the slightest. It only burned in silence, as if it were only an illusion. He had his arms drawn close to his body and hid part of himself behind Grim, as if in some vain attempt to hide from all those eying him.

Ker couldn't help but eye him. Why was this painfully shy Chandelure here? Was he supposed to be the guest of honor? If he was, then there had been a mistake. No one of that sort should be in the dimension. The Chandelure should never have been brought here to be with everyone else. He would never be able to survive with his demeanor.

" _ **Thank you all for coming,"**_ Grim said, hushing any remnants of conversation amongst the crowd. _**"I am sure that our newest denizen is very happy that you are all here to greet him."**_

So this Chandelure was going to be a part of this dimension. Ker hadn't been mistaking anything. She glanced at the Chandelure to find that he was subtlety disappearing further behind Grim. Ker wanted to scoff at the sight. He didn't belong in this dimension. The weak and the meek didn't belong in this realm.

" _ **Please welcome our five hundredth and sixty-eighth denizen of our realm, Ignis!"**_

Grim swooped away from the Chandelure, allowing everyone to see all of him. Ignis quickly brought his tendrils over his face, shielding himself from everyone's view. Ker felt herself cringing at the sight. She would have left if she could. However, the one rule of the welcoming ceremony was that you couldn't leave until it was completely over. You had to lend your support to the newcomer and make them feel welcome. If you tried to leave, Grim would somehow know and trap you in his maw until you were ready to collapse from starvation. Ker had fortunately never had that happen to her, but she had heard about it through rumors.

So even though she wasn't sure how long she could last watching this Chandelure, she knew it was better than suffering in total darkness with the wails of banshee to keep her company.

Everyone around Ker cheered and glimmered their eyes, showering Ignis with greetings. However, he still cowered behind his arms, refusing to make eye contact with any of them. Ker couldn't help but wonder why he was acting like such a child when he was clearly an adult. She considered that maybe he was from one of those dimensions where you could become a Chandelure before you matured.

Grim's red eyes gave off a glint, silencing the crowd in an instant. He glanced at Ignis for a quick moment before gazing back at the mass of ghosts.

" _ **Now, onto the final act of business before you may do as you please. It is time to assign someone to aid Ignis until he understands all there is to know."**_

Everyone gave each other unsure glances. Ker knew it was because no one liked having to be shadowed. While it was understandable that a newcomer wouldn't understand anything about their new lives in this dimension, teaching them everything was quite a chore in itself. There was so much to learn, so much potentially demented information to impart on this new ghost. And if you weren't careful or if the ghost was particularly sensitive, they'd enter a full-blown panic and potentially go on a frenzied rampage.

She wondered who would be the unfortunate soul to get paired up with this weak Chandelure.

Grim glanced through the crowd with his eye, looking for his victim. Everyone remained petrified in place. Ker only stood there with a bored expression. Oh, what dimension she should go visit after the ceremony ended? Where in the infinities of everything should she visit for her next meal? That dimension where humans and Pokémon both stood on equal grounds sounded nice. It was a weird place, always seeing humans treating Pokémon like something other than pets, but that dimension did offer good food. Besides, it did need a ghost to visit every so often to put everyone inside in their place. It was one of _those_ dimensions, the ones where they thought the primal was a nuisance and needed to be exterminated.

Ker just started to like the idea when Grim's gaze suddenly fell on her. Ker felt something cold strike her core the moment that red eye locked onto her gemstones.

That stare could only mean one thing. That insidious, haunting stare that read her very soul and knew every secret and thought held within.

" _ **Ker, you will be the one to offer guidance to our newest denizen."**_

Normally, you were supposed to accept being the new ghost's guide. You weren't supposed to question Grim's choices and taught the new ghost the best you could. That was yet another way to find yourself in his monstrous maw. You did everything Grim and all of the other creatures that ran the ceremonies and brought new denizens to the dimension. That was the one rule you had to follow. You could do anything else you wanted, you name it, but you had to obey the Reapers, as they so called themselves. Their word was absolute.

Ker always listened because of that. She knew her place in the hierarchy of the dimension. Only idiots rebelled, and she most certainly wasn't an idiot.

But Ker couldn't listen this time.

" _What?!"_ Ker blurted out. "What do you mean I'm his guide?"

She could hear the ghosts behind her muttering to each other, wondering how she could possibly have the nerve to talk back to Grim. She ignored them. Grim was all who mattered to her right now.

The Dusknoir's stoic expression didn't change as he kept his unfaltering eye locked onto her.

" _ **You know exactly what it means. You have been to three hundred and twenty-three ceremonies."**_

"I get what it means," Ker said bitterly. "But why me? Why would you choose me of all the ghosts here?"

" _ **There is no reason. It is only your turn. You should be a fine guide considering that you have been here for quite some time."**_

"Alright fine, fair enough. But what about Ignis? Why did you bring him here? He doesn't belong here. I mean, look at him."

The Chandelure quickly retreated behind Grim, completely hiding himself from Ker. Ker shook her head disapprovingly before looking back at Grim. His expression didn't change in the slightest. He swooped toward Ker until he towered right above her. Ker resisted the urge to back away as she struggled to keep her gaze on his eye.

" _Come play with us, Ker."_

" _We'll love you forever, Ker."_

" _We know that's what you want, Ker."_

" _You don't have to be lonely, Ker."_

" _Come closer, Ker."_

" _Join us, Ker."_

" _You're safe here, Ker."_

No, don't listen to the voices. Don't listen to the whispers coming out of Grim's bowels. Don't believe them. Second you believe them, you're done for. Ker knew this; she had been these voices before.

" _ **You are working with him. There is no arguing with that fact. You will teach him everything he needs to know to thrive in this dimension. Do I make myself clear, Ker?"**_

Ker knew better than to state that he was dodging her question. Though he showed no hostility toward her, she could feel a strong pressure weighing down on her being. It pressed down on her so greatly that she worried it would make her collapse.

Looks like there was no point resisting.

"Yeah Grim. I gotcha," she said quietly. "I'll teach Ignis."

" _ **Good. I am glad you did not escalate this."**_

The pressure holding her down vanished, allowing Ker some relief. She watched the Dusknoir then swoop away from her and bring his eye back to the captivated crowd.

" _ **The welcoming ceremony is over. Enjoy the rest of the celebration for as long as you would like."**_

And then, with the snap of his fingers, Grim vanished. Not a trace of him remained or those whispers. Everyone remained where they stood, speechless at the spectacle that had unfolded before them. Ker could feel their eyes on her back, making a shudder go down her spine. She had never had this much attention on her by so many Pokémon at once. Even when the blaring music returned and resonated throughout the glade, the eyes would not leave her.

Ker brought her gaze back to the Chandelure to find that he was still before her. He seemed at a loss, keeping a shy gaze locked onto her as he awkwardly curled the ends of his tendrils together. Ker rubbed her head with her claws and moaned to herself.

Why did this have to happen to her? Why did she have to mentor this pathetic excuse of a Chandelure of all possible new recruits? Just what was Grim thinking?

"Come on, we've got a lot to learn," Ker said to the Chandelure.

She made her way toward the ghost. He got ready to bolt, but Ker was ready. She grabbed him by one of his tendrils just before he could escape. Then, before he could struggle, she raked the air with her free claw.

A massive, jagged hole suddenly appeared in the air, as if Ker had torn out a portion of the very atmosphere. Within that tear lay not the dead, dark forest the two found themselves in, but instead a stone castle atop a great mountain witnessing the morning sun.

Ker tightened her grip on her ghostly companion, and then leapt into the tear.

* * *

Ker fell out the other side of the tear and descended upon one of the castle's spiraling spires. The Sableye angled herself, and then landed upon the spire's slanted surface on all fours. She didn't slide down the spike as her feet and claws met the rough rock, but they did partially sink into the spire. She had to pull them out before the rest of her form could phase through the castle.

Ker watched the tear close up above her. She thought she could still see some of the ghosts watching her from the spectral dimension before the tear disappeared completely. How long would everyone talk about the little stunt she had pulled in front of Grim? When was the last time anyone had talked back to the Reapers anyway?

"Wha-What is this place? Why d-did you bring us here?"

It was then that Ker remembered exactly why she was settled onto a castle spire in the first place. The Sableye looked over at her side to find that she still had her claw wrapped tight around Ignis's tendril. The Chandelure himself repeatedly tugged his tendril away from her, but was having no luck in freeing himself.

Ker righted herself up, but refused to relinquish her hold on her reluctant companion. She had a feeling that he would take off the second she released him. She had absolutely no intentions of hunting him down in this dimension.

"This is another dimension," Ker answered, just barely able to keep her bitterness out of her voice. "As for why we're here, well this is where I'm going to teach you everything you need to know if you wanna thrive. It's the perfect training dimension for a newcomer like you."

Ignis stopped struggling. His glassy, yellow eyes gave off a glint as he curled his free tendril in toward himself. Huh, so those tendrils were flexible after all. They weren't rigid all the time. That was interesting.

"Wha-What do you mean this is another dimension?" he asked in his meek, feeble voice that Ker felt belonged more to a Wurmple than a Chandelure.

"It's exactly what I said," she stated. "This is another dimension, an entirely new universe. It can be almost exactly the same as your home dimension, or completely different. So what exactly was your dimension like so I can tell you how different this dimension is from yours?"

"I-It had humans and Pokémon in it. They l-lived together but… they weren't equals. Lots of humans had Pokémon as pets. Or they had the Pokémon do errands for them. Like there were these Machamp that would help make buildings. Or… Or the humans would use Dragonite to get from one country to another."

"Oh, you lived in that kind of dimension. That's a popular kind of dimension, really. Lots of dimensions have Pokémon and humans with that kind of relationship."

"R-Really?"

"Yeah, really. I go to those kinds of dimensions sometimes. Humans can make great food if you mess with them just right. But we're not in that kind of dimension now. _This_ dimension right here only has Pokémon. There's no humans anywhere. At least, not anymore."

Ignis nodded and peered over the spire. It was quite a long ways down to the castle's entrance. If the both of them had bodies and tried to jump off the spire at that moment, they would splatter into a bloody mess the second they touched the ground. Ignis must have known this as well, because Ker could see his flames shuddering.

What a pathetic ghost he was. He had to have been the most cowardly ghost she had ever met in the eons of time and infinities of dimensions.

And yet, Ker couldn't taste his fear in the air. Obviously he was terrified; his flames wouldn't be moving like that if he wasn't. And yet, she couldn't taste even the slightest hint of it. She couldn't understand why that was so. She could taste the emotions of any being, whether they were a mortal or an "immortal" like herself. Ignis should have been no exception.

But all Ker could taste was the bland, oxygen-rich air that all those mortals in the castle thrived on. She started to wonder if maybe she couldn't taste his emotions because he was a new ghost. Maybe his spirit was still adjusting to life without a body and couldn't properly emit emotions yet. It made absolutely no sense to her, but she couldn't come up with a better explanation.

"There… there's something I've been wondering," Ignis then said. "Well… a… a lot of things, actually. But this one thing most."

"Yeah, and what's that?" Ker asked.

"That Dusknoir… why did he bring me to that d-dimension from earlier? He-He said that I belonged th-there now but… he didn't say why."

"He didn't?"

"No… he just took me out of my own dimension and said that someone else would explain everything to me after meeting all of the other ghosts…"

Ker was about to groan, but then she realized something.

She could take advantage of Ignis's meekness. His frail personality didn't have to be a burden to her.

After all, Grim hadn't told Ignis anything. He had left the Chandelure completely in the dark. Ker herself was solely responsible for his successful integration into his new life. Maybe this entire experience with Ignis didn't have to be so bad. He was so impressionable right now, after all. She couldn't lie to him or else Grim would lock her up in his maw the second he found out, but there were ways to enjoy this.

Maybe she could get that delicious dread from him this way.

Now you weren't exactly _supposed_ to eat other ghost's emotions. The Reapers always said you were only supposed to eat mortal emotions and that was it. Supposedly if you ate other ghost's emotions, it had other effects besides satisfying your hunger. What those effects were, no one had ever elaborated.

But what Ker did know was that ghostly fear was downright divine. She had done it once long ago and she could never forget the taste. It tasted so sweet yet tarty, a trickling warmth that filled your entire being and made you shudder…

How could she ever resist such a perfect opportunity to get those amazingly delicious emotions? There probably weren't any of these other effects in the first place; she certainly hadn't felt them when she had eaten that one Gengar's fear, even if it had only been a quick taste.

"Oh wow, you're in for quite a surprise then," Ker said giddily, resisting a laugh. "It'll blow your mind."

Ignis didn't say anything. He only shirked away from Ker. He didn't get very far since Ker still held his tendril tight. The Sableye pulled him back toward her until there only a few inches of space lay between them.

"They say the best teacher is experience, so how about we go visit all the mortals in the castle?" Ker suggested with a mischievous grin. "Let's see how feels it be with them now that you're like this…"

Ker dragged Ignis down with her into the stone. The two phased right through the spire, falling through the ancient rock as they plummeted deep into the castle. The two only ceased their descent when Ker settled upon a large chandelier hanging high above a great hallway lined with regal tapestries and rugs. Dozens if not hundreds of Pokémon walked right under them, bags strapped to their persons as they hurried along. Not a single one glanced up at Ker and Ignis, too engrossed in conversations with surrounding Pokémon or their own thoughts.

A myriad amount of flavors wafted through the air and into Ker's mouth. Bitter contempt and disgust, tangy eagerness and euphoria, spicy anticipation and intrigue, salty disappointment and jealousy, and savory tension and astonishment all filled the castle. She could taste every single emotion with fine precision in this spacious hall. It was unfortunate she couldn't detect even the subtlest hints of sweetness anywhere, but she knew it would come. Sweet flavors manifested under specific circumstances only she could create.

"The air… it tastes strange," Ignis said. "It didn't used to t-taste this way before that Dusknoir found me. Is… is this normal?"

"Yep. What you're tasting right now are a little something you might know as emotions," Ker replied.

"E-Emotions? You mean feelings like happiness and sadness?"

"Yeah, those things. When Grim got you, he didn't just take you out of your dimension. He ripped your soul right out of your body and changed it. He made you a ghost."

"Wha… what? B-b-b-but I was a ghost already! That-that doesn't-"

"No, you weren't a ghost. I hate it when Pokémon say that about themselves. You were a ghost _type._ You were still a mortal with a physical body that let you do weird, creepy things like phase through walls. You still had to eat, still had to sleep, and still had this insatiable need to reproduce and make little versions of you. But most of all, _you could still die_.

"But not after Grim got you. He tore your soul from your body and now you're an actual ghost. Some like to say that we're _demons_ since we don't look like wisps or whatever they all think ghosts are supposed to look like. But don't let anyone mess with you; you're 'dead' now and you're nothing but a soul. But even though you technically shouldn't have to eat anymore since you don't have a body, you kind of have to. Your soul is going to grow really weak if you don't sustain it somehow. So since you can't eat plants or meat or whatever you ate as a mortal, you're going to be eating emotions now."

"I'm… I'm going to be eating emotions? But… do I really have to? A-Are you sure that there's not another way?"

"Well you could choose not to… but you'll suffer. First you'll lose the ability to move. You'll struggle all you want, but you won't be able to float. Then you'll feel this hollowness grow in you. It'll start small, but it'll get bigger and bigger with time until you literally can't feel anything at all. Then, you'll start losing your mind. Your memories will all start slipping away, one by one. You won't be able to remember your mom, your friends, the name of the city you grew up in, your favorite hobby. They'll just slip away until you can't even remember who you are. And then when that happens… you meet the worst fate anyone can have.

"You're removed from existence. You are never to be found, never to be saved, never to be remembered by anyone who ever has and ever will exist. To put it as simply as I can, you become _**absolutely**_ _**nothing**_."

Ignis let out a whimper as he cowered back from Ker. The Sableye allowed him some space, but still kept her firm grip on his tendril. She couldn't stop grinning as she watched him violently try to squirm out of her grasp, but fail no matter how hard he tried.

However, it didn't take her long to notice that she still could not feel the least bit of dread from him. She couldn't taste one hint of that sweet flavor she craved. It was such a disappointment that it broke her smile the moment she made the realization. It seemed that she needed to try harder to get that delicious emotion out of him.

"Relax, you're not going to end up like that," Ker said with a disapproving frown. "You've really got to try to even start losing your memories. It's not easy ignoring your hunger and starving yourself."

"Oh… Oh, good," Ignis said as he finally settled down. "I… I don't want to end up like that…"

"Well no one does. But as long as you eat plenty of fear, you'll be just fine."

"But… But why? Why can't I have happiness? I thought that… that happiness was stronger than fear."

"No, _no way is that true._ Don't you ever believe that. _Fear_ is supreme to all the other emotions or chemicals or _whatever_ those mortals want to call them. Fearwas with mortals _long_ before happiness ever decided to show up. Fear was there the second they hatched from their eggs or came out of someone's womb or come bursting out of someone's chest or _whatever_ else happens at birth. You're only truly alive when you're fleeing from what you think is death. Happiness doesn't do that. Happiness lulls you, makes you content with your situation. Makes you not want to move forward."

"But you can still eat it, can't you?"

"Oh you can… you'll just lose all your energy. Eating happiness slows you down to a crawl. You eat fear and only fear if you know what's good for you."

"Wha-What about the other emotions like sadness and rage? Are you sure you can't eat those?"

Ker frowned. She eyed a Mawile and Pansage walking directly under the chandelier she stood upon. She couldn't hear their conversation, but based on the sudden spike of bitterness in the air, she knew it was anything but pleasant. She watched them for just a moment, and then tightened her grip around Ignis.

"Why don't you try eating their contempt and see what happens?" Ker suggested. "I'll help you get closer to them."

Ker leapt off the chandelier with Ignis in tow and darted into the nearest wall. She crept through the stone until she made it to the marble floor that lined the hallway. She snuck into the floor, staying close to its surface as she swept past all of the Pokémon in her way. She saw them shiver as she swooped right beneath their feet. She savored the mild, sugary taste from each of them. It wasn't very filling, similar to a mortal having a slice of bread for a meal, but it was refreshing after having that awful, contempt-filled taste in her mouth.

Within moments, Ker and Ignis found themselves right beneath the Mawile and Pansage. The Sableye took a moment to listen to their conversation, wondering what they could possibly be discussing that could give off so much bitterness.

"I'm telling you, we should kick Felix and Ivy off the team," the Pansage stated with a dark frown. "They're not doing anything useful. They just keep getting in the way of missions and making everything harder."

"They just joined," the Mawile shot back. "Give them some time to get used to everything. We weren't always the best team when we first started, remember?"

"They've been on the team for a month. They shouldn't be making as many mistakes as they are now. Forgetting to pack a couple of apples for a five day trip, sure, I can live with that. Who doesn't forget to pack apples? But losing those Sitrus berries that Guildmaster Len and Zekra specifically requested us to pick up in Steel City? That's unacceptable. I'll never forget the lashing Master Zekra gave us until Len calmed her down."

"That wasn't their fault. How were they supposed to know that we'd be ambushed by hungry Aipom in Tropius Jungle on the way back?"

"They were Aipom. Aipom, as in the weakest jungle Pokémon there are. They should have been able to take those Aipom out with just one strike."

"Come on, you know that those Aipom were particularly fierce that day. They weren't going to leave us alone unless we knocked them all out."

"That still doesn't excuse the rest of their shortcomings. Felix hasn't learned how to harness dark power even though he's a Weavile now and Ivy can't even conjure up her vines on a whim. How are we supposed to be an effective team when half our team can't even-"

So it was a typical argument in universes like these filled with guilds. Ker had heard many conversations like this. Some team members gossiping about odd ones of the team, some growing schism over something especially petty that would rupture the team in half, or an honest disgust for the guildmasters themselves. Whatever it was, they always gave Ker the exact same emotions, filling her mouth with the cyanide that it was.

"Alright Ignis, go ahead and eat their contempt," she then said. "Just focus on the emotion coming out of them, and then suck it all in. Go ahead and watch what happens."

"Thi-This won't hurt them?" Ignis asked.

"They're not going to feel a thing. It'll just rip the emotion out of them. Now go on, do it."

The Chandelure cast his gaze upon the two bickering Pokémon above them. Ker watched his eyes illuminate with a white light as the fire within his form swelled to twice its size. The flames upon his tentacles flickered and swayed in an unsettling manner. For just a moment, Ker no longer saw Ignis as the weak little spirit not fit for her dimension; she saw a true poltergeist capable of striking terror into even the bravest of mortals. It made her want to release her hold on him and float in awe at the marvelous sight.

But just before she could, the Chandelure made a hissing noise that sounded too much like someone pouring water onto hot coals. He retreated away from the surface and stuck his tendrils into his domed form, as if he intended to burn away any traces of the emotion he had just absorbed. Any semblance of his intimidating self vanished as he writhed in place.

"Eugh! Eaaaugh, that was horrible!" he sputtered. "Augh! It stings!"

"Yeah, that's why you don't eat any form of anger," Ker replied, hiding her dissatisfaction. "Except maybe disappointment. Disappoint can taste alright if nobody's yelling at each other. It's still no replacement for fear though."

"N-Noted. Euuuuuugh."

"I told you not to eat anything but fear if you know what's good for you."

"I-I know you did. But… But I just wanted to know if I really had to. Why do we have to eat fear exactly?"

For a moment, Ker didn't say anything. In truth, she hadn't heard anyone ask this question before. She knew the answer, she had known for some time, but she never had to explain to anyone else before. She honestly considered deflecting Ignis's question until she saw how earnestly he gazed at her.

Maybe she could finally get that delicious emotion out of him if she answered his question a certain way.

"Because that's what we're supposed to eat," Ker said. "As for why it tastes good, well that's how instincts work. They make you want something they know you need. If something is good, you keep wanting it. If it's nasty like that disdain you just ate up, then you stay away from it."

"L-Like spending time with others," Ignis replied. "We like being around others because we need them. We… We need their help to survive."

"Yeah. So when some Reaper like Grim comes along and rips your soul right out of your body, it changes your instincts so that you actually like the taste of fear. And you wanna know why they do that to you?"

"W-Why?"

"Because… we're not just ghosts living in some spectral dimension doing whatever we want. No, all those Reapers get us because we have a very specific job to do."

The fire rising from Ignis's tentacles simmered down, becoming nothing more than tiny embers. Ker was sure that if she had lungs, she could blow the feeble flames right out with a single breath.

"An-And what's that?" Ignis asked weakly.

"To remind all the mortals of all the universes that they can never control everything," Ker answered ominously. "The more advanced a society gets, the more they start to think that they're above troublesome little things like fear and pain and suffering. They think that with their cute little inventions, they can avoid all of that. They think they can finally achieve peaceful lives, free from all the turmoil and danger they'd find in primitive days. With this brand new medicine, they can prolong death and live days that were never theirs to have. With this bladed weapon, they can vanquish the very predators that once spelled doom for them. With this cooling box, they can store their food for days, if not weeks at time. They can hunt in excess and store away what they don't want now, saving themselves time and energy. With the domestication of the savage beast that once hunted them through the night, they can make it work for them instead. It can hunt their prey and protect them from dangers they could never know on their own.

"It goes on. All the mortals advance through time, slowly forgetting who they once were and how so very powerless they are to everything. Our job is to put them in their place. We are the black that covers the night. We are the dark whispers in the back of every mortal's mind.

"We are the absolute unknown."

Ker finally ended her lengthy ramble. She was most certainly glad she didn't need oxygen; she was sure she would have been out of breath by now. The Sableye only grinned and took in Ignis's reaction. She could only imagine how glorious it would be.

But much to Ker's great surprise, the Chandelure wasn't shuddering in the slightest. He only held her gaze, his eyes now hollow and empty. She couldn't taste anything coming out of him either; only the emotions of the mortals above her filled her mouth.

It was almost unsettling.

"So yeah… that's why we eat fear," Ker said, breaking the awkward silence. "Some ghosts say that the Reapers aren't actually doing all of this because they want to. They say that the Reapers actually get us and make us into what we are because the dimension tells them to… like it's alive and everything… but you know, nobody really knows. That's just some stupid rumor. Because you know, if the dimension really was telling them to do all that, we'd hear it talking, wouldn't we?"

Ignis didn't say anything. Ker ran her tongue over the tips of her teeth.

"But yeah…now that you know," Ker then said. "Let's um… let's go get something to eat. You need something good, and so do I."

The Sableye then dragged the wordless Chandelure along into the deeper depths of the castle. She hadn't been lying; she could use some tasty dread. She couldn't remember the last she had eaten and her form was beginning to feel heavy. Some of her thoughts even felt fuzzy as well. She could no longer grasp them as easily.

Thankfully, this dimension was especially ripe with fear. On a superficial level the dimension seemed quite hopeful and even peaceful, but if you peered past the surface, you could see the darkness and the demons that lurked within. Ker only had to manipulate certain factors of the environment and she'd reap all of the food she could possibly ever want.

Moments later, Ker brought Ignis to one of the many bedrooms of the castle. It was one of the larger ones, perfect for teams of ten or more. And though it was morning, a good number of the team members still lay asleep in their beds, oblivious to the two ghosts standing in the dark corner of the room.

Ker finally released her hold on Ignis as she flexed her claws. The Chandelure remained still, his vacant stare still unchanged. The Sableye looked over each of the slumbering Pokémon from where she stood, studying them carefully. Five Pokémon slumbered in the room at the moment. The one nearest to her was a Mudbray, the ugly little thing whispering something in his sleep. At first glance one would think he was in the midst of a nightmare, but Ker knew better. He didn't toss in his sleep or sweat profusely.

Another Pokémon slumbered right beside the Mudbray, this one being a Lilligant. She seemed in a state of peace, the leaves protruding from her head swaying ever so slightly with each quiet breath she took. The same could be said about the Pawniard, Zangoose, and Mightyena sleeping under the window at the back of the room. All of the Pokémon seemed at peace, unaware of the nightmare watching them.

To any other ghosts, these Pokémon would be useless. They would offer nothing sustainable and bothering them would be a waste of energy.

But not to Ker. Ker knew how to reap exactly what she wanted from this unfortunate group.

"This is how you get your food," Ker said in a hushed voice to Ignis. "You stay there and watch."

Ker's form turned a darker shade of purple as a black, tattered cloak manifested around her neck. When it finished materializing, the Sableye stepped out of the shadows and presented herself before the slumbering group.

"Look at all of you…" Ker asked, her voice now gravelly, sinister, and uncannily enough, male. "I thought I told you that you couldn't trust the leaders of Pledge Mountain."

Her voice resonated throughout the room like a distorted echo. All of the slumbering Pokémon snapped their eyes open and shot their gazes toward the Sableye. It didn't take long for any traces of lulling energy to vanish as a panicked state came over the group. Ker could already taste a savory flavor in the air, but it wasn't what she wanted. It was still the quick, instant sort of fear; astonishment. The kind that made you run away or attack any immediate threats. This wasn't the deep, abysmal dread she sought.

"My… My liege," the Mightyena rasped. "How are you here? You… You died. "

"I died? Did you honestly believe that I could possibly perish so easily after everything I've been through?" Ker asked, glowering at them. "I suppose you have no faith in your leader's capabilities. I shouldn't be surprised; you are working for the ones I warned would kill you without a second thought. I told you this multiple times, if I recall correctly."

"But… there's nothing to worry about anymore," the Pawniard then said. "We took care of those corrupt leaders. It's Len and Zekra that run this organization now. They even gave it a new name and a new goal."

Ker scoffed. She made her way toward the group, prompting them to step back out of reflex. She could taste a tinge of sweetness in the atmosphere now. She had to resist smiling.

"Do you honestly think that Len is on our side?" Ker asked in disgust. "He was always on those corrupt leaders' side. We trust no one who worked for Pledge Mountain's leaders. We only trust those from our base and only them."

"But… how can you be so sure?" the Pawniard asked. "We've been here for fifteen years now… Len hasn't done anything to us. He's been really nice to us. And wasn't he the one who helped us get rid of Pledge Mountain's leaders in the first place?"

"All a façade," Ker said. "All something to let your guard down so you could trust him. The only reason he hasn't killed any of you is because he doesn't need to. You prove far too useful with helping him rebuild this region in his own design. Of course… he will kill you when he no longer has use for you."

The Pokémon glanced uneasily at each other. The sweetness in the air grew stronger. It became so strong that it felt similar to walking into a bakery right at dawn.

"But then, why did you disappear?" the Lilligant then asked, fumbling with her paws. "Why didn't you tell us any of this before?"

"I disappeared to make Len think that I would be out of the picture," Ker answered simply. "I wanted him to think that I had died so that I could catch him off-guard. As for why none of you know of this… I had honestly expected you to understand the moment I said I would be disappearing. When have I ever told any of you that I would disappear? When do I ever say that there is a possibility I might perish?"

"Well you sounded so sure before we stormed this mountain…" the Lilligant replied feebly.

"Nonsense," Ker replied with a dismissive wave of her claw. "Hmph. To think that you would all believe I would abandon my very followers so easily after everything we've been through."

"Well then… what do you want us to do then?" the Croagunk then asked. "If we really are in danger… then what do we do about it? My liege… how do we save ourselves?"

Ker finally allowed herself to grin. She made her shadow slither along the ground, moving it along the floor so that it swayed like a Seviper ready to strike. She could taste all of the dread in the air now. There was so much of it; she could practically see it in the air as a fine, black haze.

There was only one last thought to put into their minds before everything would be perfect. One last thought, and then she would have a feast before her.

"Tell the others what I told you," Ker replied as her eyes radiated with a green light. "Tell them that they are not safe here and that I have returned. Tell them that at dusk, we shall all meet in the dungeon of this mountain. And from there, I will tell you what we must do to free ourselves before it's too late. Before Len hears of my return and slaughters us all. Now _go._ _ **Hurry.**_ "

Within a second, all five of the Pokémon burst out of the room and sprinted down the hall as quickly as their legs would allow them. Ker could see them practically tripping over themselves as they hurried into the depths of the castle, frantically searching for their other acquaintances and teammates.

Ker couldn't stop herself from laughing as she shifted back into her true form, losing the cape and her darker tone. She had done it. Now the whole room held the sweet aroma of dread. It lingered strongly in the room even though all of the Pokémon were on the other side of the castle now. That was the one thing about fear; because it was so strong, you didn't have to absorb it directly from the mortal. Fear lingered for many minutes at a time in a small vicinity, especially if the vicinity was closed off and isolated like this bedroom.

The Sableye took in as much as she could of the sugary emotion. She slurped it right up, savoring every bit of the heavenly aroma and taste. As she absorbed it into her being, her form lightened. No longer did she feel gravity pulling her to the ground. She could truly feel her spectral form free itself from the binds of the mortal realm.

By the time Ker had taken all that she could handle, she felt born anew. Her entire form felt renewed and invigorated as if she had woken from a long, restful sleep. Even her very gemstones had been restored to their lustrous selves, all of the jagged cracks that tore through their surfaces now completely sealed up.

The Sableye reveled in this blissful feeling for just a moment longer, and then brought her gaze over to Ignis. She found that he still hovered there in the dark corner, watching her silently.

"Alright, you can have what's left," she told him. "There should be enough for you to last you a while."

The Chandelure slowly emerged from the shadows and made his way toward the Sableye. Ker watched him draw close until he was right by her side. He didn't partake in any of the dread around them, instead only eying Ker with his empty gaze.

"W-Why were you talking to those Pokémon like that?"

"Oh that? I was pretending to be this Sableye that used to be their leader. See, here's the thing about this dimension. It used to be overrun with all these monsters that would eat everybody. So some Pokémon built this organization to get rid of those monsters. Of course, there was this huge conspiracy with the organization and well… it's a lot to explain really. You had to watch it all happen to understand any of it. All you really need to know is that I basically made them think that their leader came back from the dead and told them that they weren't actually safe."

"So... So you made them doubt everything. You made them doubt their heart, their instincts, their trust, their memories... you took it all away and left them with n-n-n-nothing."

"Yeah! Because if there's one thing mortals fear most, it's the unknown. Mortals cling to their feelings and their supposed truths of the world. So if you make them think that they don't know anything… they realize how powerless they really are.

"But of course, those mortals are going to know I was lying to them when they all show up in the dungeon later. They'll realize their leader really is gone and that what happened here was probably just some bad nightmare. Or something. They'll come up with some explanation to rationalize what just happened. They always do."

"So... this is how you you scare mortals."

"Yep! It's pretty great, isn't it?"

The Chandelure stared at her, refusing to answer. Ker returned his gaze with a bemused glare. She didn't understand why he wasn't eating any of the terror around them. He had to have been hungry; he was a new ghost after all. And yet he only continued to watch her with his glassy eyes.

"Ha. Ah… hah. You're serious," Ignis said after a while, his voice lowering to a terrifying tone as the crackling of his fire grew louder. "You thrive by stripping mortals of everything they cling to. You relish in their existential suffering. Ahah. _Ahhh_."

"Yeah… I do," Ker answered quietly, taking a subtle step away from the Chandelure. "It lasts longer than just popping out of a wall and spooking them. And it tastes better too… you could taste the difference, couldn't you? Wasn't there a huge taste difference between when those Pokémon first saw me to when they bolted out the door?"

A haunting, resounding laughter resonated out of Ignis. It echoed through the air and pierced directly into Ker's core, prompting her to shudder. A powerful chill washed over her as the flames within the Chandelure's form swelled in size.

She needed to get away. She needed to get out of here.

Right now.

"You are something else, little wraith, **"** Ignis cackled. "I hadn't anticipated that playing with you would bring me this much joy and excitement. You honestly might be my best play thing yet."

"I… I don't get what you're saying," Ker stammered, further shirking away from the Chandelure. "What… What's with this sudden change in attitude? Earlier you couldn't even say one sentence without stuttering and now…"

Ignis's eyes glimmered with an evil, knowing light as he uncurled one of his tendrils and wrapped it around Ker's arm. His very touch froze her in place.

So much for getting away.

"That meek personality I exhibited isn't who I truly am. That was all a farce," Ignis answered. "This is a little something I do, you see. This is all an elaborate game. Like you, I delight in reactions. However, while you delight in ensuing existential thoughts, I partake in more _immediate_ thoughts. Say, for instance, the reaction my assigned partner might have when she discovers that I'm not actually that meek little Chandelure she thought she could traumatize. Oh, the emotions she emits when she realizes that I'm actually much more capable and more unpredictable than she anticipated are _to die for_."

Ker could practically see the smile in his eyes as he took in all of her dread. His fire burned all the more fiercely as he absorbed her feelings into his form.

"It's just as exquisite as I had hoped," Ignis laughed. "I truly did hope that I could still partake in my worldly passion when I became one of you. I had hoped the taste wouldn't sour."

Ker finally understood everything as Ignis sucked out the last of her fright. She had been played; he had been toying with her this entire time.

He had pretended to be such a weak ghost because he wanted to surprise her, to throw her off-guard. All to feed off of her bewilderment. All because it was a game to him.

A twisted game he would always win.

 _She_ was the pawn this entire time, not him.

"Well congrats, you got me," Ker spat. "You got me good and you got a good snack out of it too. I hope you had fun playing mastermind."

"I did. You were quite a joy to play with. Your astonishment was quite delicious; I don't think I've had anything so delightful in my entire life. Of course, you are the only one I've ever done this to in which I could taste it too. Perhaps other ghosts or mortals will taste far better. But knowing how absolutely marvelous you tasted, I have a feeling I might just need seconds."

"Yeah, well whatever. You clearly don't need my help with anything anymore. You're just fine on your own."

Ker tugged her claw out of Ignis's grasp, but found she could not free herself. She tried harder, yanking with all her might, but the Chandelure would not relinquish his hold. He only kept his glowing gaze on her, that sly glint still in his eyes.

She wanted to rip that look off of him. She wanted to sink her claws into his glass face and tear it out slowly, painfully.

"Let me go," Ker hissed. "I'm getting out of here. We're both done here. I've got nothing left to teach you, and I sure don't want to spend another moment with you."

"Ah I would normally be in agreement and wish to part ways as well. However, something binds me to you," the Chandelure answered coquettishly.

It was then that Ker noticed something new in his eyes. Something she could not name. Something that looked like it wanted to devour her.

"Like what?" Ker asked, eyeing the Chandelure carefully.

"How to put this eloquently… I find great amusement in your company," Ignis said as his flames simmered down. "Your depraved glee is most extraordinarily alluring. Never have I seen a creature such as yourself that does not shirk from the debauchery of life and fully embraces it. It's a rare sight, a rare gem to find within the great mines of existence. Truly something that stirs the very flames that are my soul."

"What…?"

Ignis snickered as he pulled Sableye toward him. He reeled her in close, then twirled her around and around like a top. Everything blurred around the Sableye, even the purple fire that was Ignis. She phased herself into the ground, but Ignis pulled her right back to the surface.

Suddenly something lurched Ker out of the spin and the blurs turned back into a bedroom. Now she was rushing toward a wall at full speed.

But then something stopped her before she could get very far and dipped her back to the ground. It dipped her so far down that her head hovered only a few inches above the ground. She could see the ceiling now and how filthy it was against the grey.

And she could see Ignis still holding her, his tendril now wrapped around her torso.

He still looked at her like she was his prize in the demented game that started the second they met.

He yanked her back to her feet with one swift pull. The moment he loosened his hold and reached for her arm, Ker backed away from him. She hastily phased into the ground, but she wasn't fast enough. Something wrapped around her neck before it tugged her back up. Ker couldn't even move as Ignis curled his tendril around her wrist again.

He swung her around him like a ragdoll. He pulled her this way and that all around him in his twisted waltz, his eyes glimmering with that amused light the entire time. It was the only thing Ker could focus in the chaos of it all. She wasn't even in control of her feet anymore. They only reacted to Ignis's instructions without her consent, desperate to keep up with his erratic movements. She knew she could have just phased through the ground; she knew she didn't have to step all over the ground like a mortal in this crazed dance. But for whatever reason, she couldn't do that. She couldn't be the ghost she was supposed to be.

The entire room began to spin again. Ker was glad she didn't have any organs of any sort; she was sure she would have vomited by this point.

"Oh my little wraith, allow me to tell you exactly _why_ you are so deeply ravishing."

The spinning abruptly stopped. Ker's vision snapped back into order just in time for her to see Ignis pulling her toward him again. She braced herself for yet another violent swing, and maybe another chance to yank her claw out of Ignis's grip. But she didn't go flying to Ignis's other side so he could drag her across the floor or dip her back.

No, she went straight into his form.

Ker could practically feel the heat from his ghostly fire as she pressed up against his smooth, glass-like form. She found herself too speechless to move as Ignis wrapped both of his tendrils around her completely, pinning her to his being.

She could only see his face. She could only see his eyes, his vague semblance of a mouth that wasn't even a mouth, and the fire burning so brightly inside of him.

Yes, she could most certainly see that fire. That fire that swayed and crackled, beckoning to her, tempting her to come closer. That fire that wanted to consume her and take in her everything. That fire that wanted to cherish her forever and ever.

 _Why didn't she just let it?_

"Oh, where to begin?" Ignis said with a velvety voice. "Your eyes sparkle with far more glamor than any diamond I could ever find. Your voice is a melodious tune that would make even the marvelous Meloetta envious. Your aura radiates with such an inviting darkness that makes my very soul quiver. You're absolutely stunning in all of your perverted and twisted beauty.

" _You're_ _heaven divine_."

Ker felt her face flush even though she didn't have a single drop of blood in her. She tried to pull herself away as she started to realize how tantalizing his voice had become. Or how utterly captivating his eyes were, how easy it was to become lost in the soft glow.

But she couldn't pull away. He held her there tight against his form. Not only that, but something else held her there. Something that wouldn't let her spectral form move to her command.

"I um… I see," Ker managed to say.

Why couldn't she move? Why couldn't she do anything useful?

Why did she actually like hearing those compliments?

"Hahahah. Splendid. Your bashfulness never ceases to amuse me," Ignis cooed. "Your befuddled thoughts fill the air with a delightful aroma. I could live entirely off them and never once grow tired of their savory taste."

Suddenly the fire before her wasn't so tempting anymore. Now it reminded her of the fiery pits that burned in the dark world mortals knew as Hell.

Now she could feel something similar to those infernos burning inside herself.

"You sick little _wisp_! Did you really do all of that just to get a reaction out of me?"

"Oh yes, most certainly. Your astonishment is quite a sight to behold with the way your eyes flash and how you tremble ever so slightly for just a second. And of course, the taste is quite divine. No one could ever fault me for wanting to play with you again and again when these things are so. Besides, I did say I wanted seconds. I gave you a fair warning, little wraith. It's not my fault that you have the inability to heed warnings."

" _Shut up!"_

Ker stuck out her tongue and ran it up Ignis's left eye, making extra sure she pressed her tongue against him with as much force as she could muster. The Chandelure abruptly let go of her and swooped back as the unsettling hissing noise emitted from his form. She could taste all of the unnerved energy flowing out of him. It dyed the air with a saccharine taste for just a moment before abruptly turning harsh and sickening. Ker forced herself to ignore the taste and focused on his reaction. That reaction wasn't exactly what she wanted, she much preferred him rushing out of the room while screaming like a little girl, but this would do.

Anything revolving around Ignis being in a distraught state was good enough at this point.

"Just what was _that_?" Ignis asked, the hissing seeping into his voice.

"Well it's just like you said…" Ker replied with a sneer. "It's pretty fun watching others being tormented. Consider it payback for everything you've done to me."

The Chandelure's form shuddered before he eyed the Sableye with a glower. She could see his fire shivering unpleasantly, as though something were trying to blow it out.

 _Good._ He deserved that, even if it made everything taste like rotting fruit.

"You truly are something else," Ignis said with a dark tone. "I don't think I've quite had someone _lick my eye_ before, let alone lick me in general. They're always in too much of a daze to react much before I take my leave. Ah, but not you. Not you, strange little ghost. Of all the ghosts I could have possibly played with, I find myself with you, a Sableye who delights in the torment of others. Actually no, you don't delight in suffering. You _crave it_ _ **.**_ "

The Chandelure's eyes gleamed with a strange light, and all of the malevolence vanished. Now something else glinted in his eyes. Something compelling. Something instinctual. Something insatiable. Something that erased the pungent aroma from the air and replaced it with a rich, unique flavor Ker could not name.

Ignis snickered and then locked his gaze onto the Sableye, paralyzing her.

" _ **You're an absolute aphrodisiac,"**_ Ignis purred.

He burst into a boisterous, almost maniacal laughter. Ker found she could only stand there, absolutely flustered and speechless.

 _That_ was certainly something no one had said to her before.

She could leave right now, she knew that. He wasn't holding her captive physically or with his weird, hypnotic gaze. After all, this Chandelure had been using her this entire time, toying with her so that he might savor her unsettled reactions. He was a living poison and utterly delighted in the misery that he brought.

He would only keep tormenting her the longer she stayed with him. After all, why else would he make that kind of remark? He just wanted more of her disconcerting feelings; they were his addiction. He couldn't possibly get enough of her.

And yet, she couldn't help but marvel at his depravity. He had played her so easily, so masterfully. She never would have guessed that beneath that frail mask, there lay a truly formidable and clever ghost. No one she had ever known held this much delight in suffering. He was just like her in his own unique, disturbed way.

Something about that mesmerized her. Part of her wanted to remain with him and delve deep into his mind and understand its twisted workings.

She wanted to unravel his mind and tangle it with her own. She wanted to see what warped thoughts the two could create together.

The Chandelure stopped laughing and brought his gaze back to Ker. He still held that strange glint in his eyes that made every part of her jitter with volatile energy.

No, she couldn't be impressed by him. He was a trickster, nothing more, and one who had played his game long enough. Just because just about everything about him was oh so compelling didn't mean she could let him play around with her some more. She wasn't about to stay the prize anymore. She was going to flip this entire game on its head and make Ignis _her_ prize like she was supposed to.

That vile, absolutely evil… clever, captivating, delightfully diabolical…

"I must confess that I wasn't entirely toying with you when I expressed how deeply enthralling you are," Ignis then said. "There is something alluring to you. Like a moth to a flame, I find I cannot avert my gaze from you."

"Yeah right, I'm not falling for that again," Ker muttered dryly.

"Oh, but I mean that, my little wraith. I earnestly do believe that your thought process is truly fascinating. As I said before, you embrace the darkness in life. You do not shirk from it and take great pride in the role those Reapers thrust upon you. From what I do know about the other denizens of the dimension, they do not share your thoughts."

"No… they don't. They just scare creatures because they know they have to. They scare everyone with the lowest amount of effort possible, like jumping out of walls or looking creepy."

"Mmmhmm. I suspected as much. There was something quite different about the air around you compared to the other ghosts around you when we first met."

"But you're saying that you actually find my whole look on life… uhhh… appealing."

"Yes. I will admit that it is quite amusing watching you wriggle and writhe, but I also find quite a bit of enjoyment in watching that captivating mind of yours work. It's sinister, but not melodramatic and off-putting. You claim to hold no standards, yet it's very clear that you have actual tastes. It's such a unique thought process, if I do say so myself."

No, that couldn't be right. He couldn't actually think that. This had to be another trick. He wanted her to believe him so that he could get even more of her emotions.

But she didn't see any plans in those beaming eyes. There was no darkness or no deceit. She only saw appreciation and wonderment. And well, he still had that unrecognizable glint in his eyes from before. Something that made it look like he wanted to attack her, but not in a way that would hurt her. So maybe he really was telling the truth this time.

And also… he did seem to genuinely appreciate her thoughts when she really thought about it. Never once when they were together, even when under his frail façade, had he been unhinged by her methods. In fact, he had stopped his charade _because_ she had shown him exactly what kind of ghost she truly was when feeding.

He was the only one who had ever found fascination in her thoughts. No one, not a single ghost in the entire spectral dimension, not even her supposed friends, had ever wanted to hear what she had to say. They would tolerate her, but never once actually want to listen to her thoughts. They were too morbid, too extreme. Too unsettling.

But not Ignis. Ignis loved her thoughts. He enjoyed listening to them and wanted more and more of them.

She was absolutely enticing to him.

Ker felt a pleasant shudder wash over her at the thought of that.

"Would you be so kind as to allow me to remain in your company?" Ignis then asked with a coy tone. "Nothing would bring me more joy than to explore that beautifully dark and twisted mind of yours. I can practically hear it calling to me."

The Sableye laughed a little. So this was what it was like. This was what it felt like to have someone who understood you. This was what it felt like to be coveted, to be the center of someone's entire existence.

How had she lived without this? How could she have ever thought that she was happy without having this intoxicating buzzing all throughout her being?

"Well I don't know…" Ker said, now equally as coy. "How do I really know that you aren't just tricking me again? It's so hard to tell when I'm actually in your little game or not."

"Ah, a valid point. Well then, I suppose I will have to prove myself to you. But first, what may I call you by? As much as I wouldn't mind calling you my little wraith for the rest of eternity, I doubt you would."

"You can call me Ker."

"What an interesting name. I haven't heard that name in quite some time. Well then, I'm quite glad to know your name, Ker."

"Hah, thanks. You've got a nice name yourself, Ignis."

"Ah. Right, you only know me by my mortal name. Well dear Ker, I'll politely inform you that Ignis is no longer my name. My name, as of ascending from mortality to near immortality, is Gallows."

The second Ker heard the name, she couldn't stop herself from bursting into a violent laughing fit. Gallows shot her a dark glare, but she refused to stop.

"Gallows? That's got to be the most try-hard name I've ever heard. What, was Guillotine not good enough for you?"

"Oh look at you, Ker. You don't think I know what exactly 'Ker' means? Keres are the sisters of a death god from an ancient human culture. They're grotesque, violent beings. They steal the souls of those who die on the battlefield and deliver them to the underworld. Then they drink every last drop of blood from the fresh corpses, all the while rending apart the flesh with their talons. How does _that_ sound any better than my own name?"

"It's better than 'Gallows'. Gallows is just so _bad_. I thought with your poetic ways, you'd come up with a better name."

"You'll need to learn to live with it then, because that is my name. I won't respond to any other name you may call me by except Gallows, no matter what you might do to attract my attention."

"Alright then, _Gallows_."

"See, that wasn't so difficult, was it?"

"Well I felt something in me die a little when I said it, so…"

"Eventually you'll be able to call me Gallows without having to strain yourself. I'm sure of it. You will come to understand why exactly I gave myself that seemingly tasteless name."

"Yeah, the same moment you realize how stupid that name really is."

Gallows's flames flickered dangerously and bitterness flowed into the air, but Ker wouldn't stop smiling. He really had chosen such a ridiculous name. She couldn't imagine herself ever taking it with any amount of serious in the near future. For such an enthralling ghost, he had such poor tastes in names.

"Regardless of my name, I think I've decided upon a way to make you see that I truly do find you to be an intriguing ghost worthy of all my attention," Gallows said in an inviting voice that sucked Ker right in.

"Oh yeah? And what's that?" she asked.

Gallows laughed softly as his eyes flashed with a devious light.

"Let me teach you the game," he said in a soft, silky voice. "I can tell that you crave to be as masterful as myself in the art of terror and despair. If you will let me follow you, I'll gladly teach you all that I know in return."

"Oh, well when you put it that way, how can I refuse?" Ker giggled. "And you're sure you're not lying to me? Because you know, I'm going to be pretty mad if this is all just another trick of yours…"

"You'll always be a target of my games, dear Ker. I will not deny that. Your reactions are far too delicious for me to ever stop partaking in. To ask me to stop taking in your emotions is to ask me to stop existing altogether."

"Oh, well _that's_ reassuring."

"Ah, don't think of it as something malicious. Understand, you are no longer a mere source of amusement. You are no longer a pattern I can easily manipulate. You're a ghost whose very darkness calls to me with its alluring voice and pulls me toward it. You're simply so beguiling, so addicting, that I am practically a slave to your whims. You may be playing my game, but I'm letting you win now."

"So you mean… you're like obsessed with me and are willing to do anything to get my emotions?"

"That sounds far less embellishing than how I intended it to sound, but I suppose that is a way of looking at it."

"Well I guess that makes it kind of better… sort of. Do I ever get to scare you? Because you know, I'd hate to just constantly be tricked by you and I can't do anything back. It'd be pretty unfair."

"Ah, of course. I cannot guarantee you'll receive the exact reactions you want, but I won't stop you from trying. That is part of the game, after all. I think I might even enjoy watching you scheme against me. It's been some time since I've been deeply terrified. I forget what it feels like."

"What, me licking you didn't count?"

"No, that was simply disgusting. Please don't ever do that again."

"No promises."

" _Eugh_. Even still, yes, you can try all you like to frighten me. I have no qualms with that, whatsoever."

"Sweet. Alright, I think I'll go along with all this. This could be fun."

Ker saw that devious smile in Gallows's eyes again, but she didn't feel the uncomfortable chill going through her. She only felt a grin creep onto her face at the sight of that devilish look. Suddenly that look wasn't something that wanted to devour her soul. Now it was a raw compulsion that wanted nothing more than to drag Ker into its euphoric, primal rush.

She hoped she would see that glimmer many, _many_ times.

Gallows closed the space between the two of them. He wrapped both of his tendrils around Ker, holding her in a tight embrace just as he had when riling her up with his compliments. However, unlike then, it actually felt good to be so close to him.

She felt that she actually belonged there against Gallows and hear nothing but the snapping of his fire.

"Well then, shall we begin?" Gallows asked as he caressed the gemstone on her chest with the end of one of his tendrils. "I want to wake up all of those demons lurking inside you…"

Ker looked around the both of them. She could see that they were still in that empty bedroom, but she wasn't sure how much longer it would stay that way. She could sense Pokémon walking past the door, probably talking about guild things that she couldn't care less about.

"Yeah… but let's not do any of that here," Ker said. "I think I've had enough of this place. There's like a million places better than here."

Ker took one of her claws and tore open a portal beside them. She didn't even have to peer into the tear to know that it led to a beautiful dimension just perfect for this game Gallows spoke of.

Somewhere the darkness stretched on into eternity and the monsters within ran amok without cease.

Yes, Ker was going to enjoy her time with Gallows. She'd be having lots of fun with him.

 _All of this was going to be just perfect._

Ker held her gaze with Gallows for just a moment longer, and then dragged him into the tear with her.


	10. I Promise I Won't Hurt You

Glace sat in the corner of a desolate chamber within Jera's cavern. She wasn't sure what the chamber's function was supposed to be, given that only a vast emptiness kept the Weavile company, but she was thankful for the quiet. She didn't want any of Jera's children to find her, nor the other caregivers. Of course, considering how there was no light in the room, Glace imagined they wouldn't be able to find her anyway if they came into the chamber. None of them were dark-types, and she wasn't sure what Pokémon had night vision that weren't dark-types.

 _Jera's going to be okay, Glace. The places you gave her shouldn't be too bad for her. I mean, she got that portal going pretty quickly, so that's a good sign._

 _I hope nothing is too difficult for Jera. I still can't help but think she might have been better off if she had been assimilated, especially when she's an Octillery and can't really move around on land as well as me._

 _I think she'll manage. She wouldn't have volunteered if she didn't think she was capable._

 _I just hope you didn't give her a fragment that lives in a desert… or somewhere with monsters that'll kill her instantly._

 _I don't think any of the fragments live in places like that. Well, I guess except my dimension, but there were some ways to stay away from the monsters in my dimension._

 _Reassuring._

 _Aw, don't be like that, Glace. She'll be fine. But hey, I bet Yore is happy to know that both of those fragments were boys. Remember how he was panicking over how we all seemed to be girls and he was the only boy? Aren't you relieved to know that there really are other boy fragments, Yore?_

Yore didn't respond. Glace felt something shifting in her mind as something seemed to weigh down her heart.

 _Hey Yore, you there? You're being way more quiet than usual._

 _Huh? Oh sorry; I wasn't paying attention. What were you saying?_

 _I was asking if you were relieved to know that there are other boy fragments like you. Remember how you were getting all worried that we were all girls except you?_

 _You already told me that there were other boys after that happened and I believed you from the start. There was nothing to be relieved of when so._

 _Oh._

The heavy feeling in Glace's chest only grew. Now Glace was no longer sitting in the cavern. She was now standing inside of the Guard Guild, facing a Haxorus behind a counter. He had just finished glancing through the list of Pokémon Glace allowed into Lilac City. He smiled at her, giving her the warmest of gazes. She could see that through his rugged exterior, he truly was quite pleased and ever grateful to have Glace in his company.

" _You're the best sentry we could ever have, Patience. I don't know what we'd do without you."_

Glace blinked, and she was back in the cavern, surrounded by the lonely darkness she craved. The Weavile quickly grabbed at her face, pushing her claws against her mouth, her nose, the gem on her forehead, and the feathers protruding out of her scalp. Yes, she was most definitely a Weavile again. She wasn't small and winged anymore.

She wasn't one of her other selves anymore.

This couldn't happen again. She couldn't live through something as heart-wrenching as that ever again. She could still feel the lingering pain of a broken heart after what had happened with Sonata's memories.

 _Oh, you saw that, Glace._

This time, Glace was the one to remain quiet _._ She didn't know how she even wanted to phrase her thoughts on this uncomfortable and invasive subject.

 _What did Glace see?_

 _A memory of my supervisor. A memory that's... bothering me, due to recent events._

 _Whatcha talking about?_

 _Jera made sure she provided her loved ones closure before she left them. Though it was painful, she said her goodbyes so that no one would have to worry about her and resolved any issues her absence might bring. I never did that. Though I have loved ones in my own dimension as well, I never told them I was leaving. I didn't tell my guild that I would be leaving either. I simply… disappeared._

 _Oh, I get it now. Well, I think they'll understand that you had to leave. I mean, you're a grown bird; you have the right to do whatever you want. If you don't want to stay somewhere anymore, you don't have to. That's one of the great joys of being a flying-type._

 _Sorry, but that's a myth. Having domain over the sky doesn't automatically grant me the freedom to do as I please. And even if I did, that doesn't excuse the fact that everyone is probably worried sick about me. I abandoned everyone and now they're all desperately filling in the hole I left behind._

 _We all had to leave, Yore. Glace had to leave behind her dojo life, Jera had to leave behind all her children, and I had to leave behind Downfall… none of us wanted to do any of that._

 _I know… I know. I know we didn't have a choice. I know we have to stop the dimensions from falling apart. I know that I was never meant to stay in my dimension for the rest of my life. But my guild… I can't help but wonder how they are doing and if I somehow destroyed them through my departure._

A gloomy silence filled Glace's mind. The Weavile held herself as the cavern around her warped and became hazy. She focused deeply on the uncomfortable rock beneath her and how much she wanted to sit in some snow instead, but it didn't stop her world from changing. She could see the cavern turning into the odd place with the ethereal lights where Sonata would always talk to Downfall. She could already see the divine leader, in all of his grand wonder and fortitude, forming before her. But Glace saw something else as well. As the Suicune slowly manifested itself before her, Yore's guild grew around them, and out of Downfall were many Pokémon Glace knew to be other members of the guild. She could see both of these at once; the meeting spot Sonata always met Downfall in and Yore's workplace. They blended into her reality, two wistful memories at once, both of them wanting her undivided attention.

No, this couldn't happen again. She couldn't be her other selves again. She couldn't live through their memories and their pain. Especially not the pain. That pain, that pain which destroys you from the inside out, never faltering in its strength no matter how many tears you cry or how loudly you wail. That pain which throws you into the darkness you always hide from, that darkness that rips you apart little by little until you're nothing but an empty shell.

 _How about we go back to your dimension after we get one more fragment, Yore?_

Something seeped into the melancholy atmosphere, driving away the impending pain and replacing it with the hope that anything was possible, no matter how ludicrous it seemed.

 _What are you talking about, Glace? We can't take Yore back to his dimension! We have to keep finding the others. Besides, he's you now. I don't really think you can un-assimilate him._

 _I know that. What I'm trying to say is, maybe we can go to his dimension for a short time so that he can see his guild. We can give him closure. We can do that for you too, if you want, Sonata. We can make sure that Downfall is doing fine without you._

 _Would you really do that, Glace? Would you really bring me back to my dimension?_

 _Yeah, I would. If it makes the two of you happier, I would._

 _... It would make me happier, yes. And it would help me undoubtedly, maybe even more than you can understand._

 _Alright. We'll go after we find our next fragment. Does that sound fine with you, Sonata?_

 _Well it's just for a short while, so I don't see why not. We don't always have to be looking for the others, I guess. But… I don't want to see Downfall. I appreciate the offer, but I'm going to have to say no to that._

 _Alright._

 _Yeah, because I mean, if I go see him, I'm probably never going to want to leave. I'm not as strong as you guys might think I am and-_

 _It's alright, Sonata. You don't need to explain yourself. But if you change your mind, you can tell me and we'll go visit him._

 _Okay… I'll keep that in mind. But for now, just don't go back to my dimension. We can go to Yore's, but please-_

 _I know. I won't go to your dimension._

 _Okay. Alright._

Glace could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Or rather, she could feel Sonata's heart beating so roughly in her chest. She could almost visualize the Noivern fluttering her wings about or maybe wrapping them around her body like she did when they first met as separate beings. Glace couldn't blame Sonata for her reaction. Downfall had been a very special Pokémon to Sonata after all. To leave someone like that, even if you knew it was the right thing to do, that required a strength very few Pokémon had. It required even more strength to tell that someone directly why you had to leave. Glace didn't think she knew anybody that had that kind of power in them. For all of the Weavile that she knew and admired, she didn't think a single one could leave everything they cared about behind in order to save them.

Maybe Sonata was a bit of a quirky Pokémon, outspoken and driven to a fault even, but she was undeniably a strong Pokémon. Glace finally realized that now. After everything between them, Glace finally realized that through the memories she was forced to live through. And yet, Sonata was right; she wasn't strong enough to face Downfall again. She wasn't strong enough to leave him twice.

But maybe Yore was. Maybe Yore could leave behind his dimension twice. She sincerely hoped he was, otherwise she might have done more harm than good by making her suggestion.

Whatever would happen, Glace knew she couldn't think about it now. She knew the three of them had yet another fragment to find before she could bring Yore back to his dimension. There was no reason to fret over Yore's dimension when she had something else she needed to do. She didn't need to worry over Jera either. Jera was a strong Pokémon just like Sonata. She would be fine.

All of the fragments were strong Pokémon capable of achieving their goals and overcoming hardships.

 _I'm ready to go now, Sonata. Where is our next fragment?_

 _Ah, about time. Was wondering how long we'd stay here. Let's see… well, there's one that I think might be interesting and maybe easy to get. But from what I got about her, she seems really weird._

 _What do you mean by that?_

 _Well what I know about her is kind of vague, but it's like… she's not really alive? She's "dead" but not really? I really don't know how to describe it._

 _Do you mean that she's a ghost Pokémon?_

 _Well technically? She's a Sableye, but she just looks like one. She's not actually a Sableye on the inside._

 _Are we not the same? I only appear as a Tranquil, and you two only appear as a Noivern and Weavile. On the inside, we are all Keeper of Realms._

 _Yeah, I know that, but… Arceus, how do I explain this? It's like she's an actual ghost, like a dead Pokémon, but she can still "die" if she doesn't eat? That's what I get out of all of the vague information I have on her. I really don't get what she is. I mean, I don't know a whole lot about any of the fragments, but she's the one I don't understand the most. I just know that she's not like the rest of us. She's different._

 _Then why do you want to go after her now and not save her for later?_

 _Because I have this impression that she's not really connected to anything in her dimension. When I think about Ker, I feel this… darkness. Like this apathetic darkness that doesn't care about anything. So if she's not really connected to anything in her dimension, maybe she'd be more willing to come with us._

 _It doesn't necessarily mean that though._

 _I know it doesn't, but it can't hurt to get Ker next, can it? We have to get her sometime, so might as well be now._

 _Maybe. But fine, we can get Ker. I don't see why we can't. How do we get to her?_

 _Ummmmm… with that tear! Actually, you know what? I'm going to see if I can just show you them instead. Close your eyes and focus for a minute or two._

Glace closed her eyes and focusing on the infinite tears cutting through the equally infinite barriers of all the dimensions. She didn't know what she was expecting to see, but she trusted Sonata knew what she was doing.

When she opened her eyes again, Glace almost jolted to her feet. She could see them now, those rips the size of her claws tearing through space and time. They tore into the walls, the ground, the ceiling, floated in the air, everything. They were everywhere, watching her and offering her glimpses into realms she was never meant to see. She could see so many Pokémon in those tears, but she saw other creatures as well. Creatures she couldn't recognize, like bipedal creatures with no fur and wore bright cloths all around their bodies.

There were so many of these tears that Glace almost couldn't see the current dimension she was in. She only saw all of the other dimensions in their surreal wonder, all of them demanding her attention at once.

 _There's so many of them…_

 _Well of course! And this isn't even all of them. If you get out of this cramped little place, you'll find a lot more outside. But hey, we were lucky since the tear we want is right here with us._

 _And where is this tear?_

 _Just look down. You'll know it when you see it._

Glace did as she was told and immediately saw the tear Sonata spoke of. Right there, in front of her on the ground, was a tear streaming with an ominous, black haze. Glace immediately retreated back and banged her head against the wall. Glace growled under her breath as she rubbed the back of her scalp.

 _Hey, don't worry! It's just something weird that comes out of that dimension. It's not poisonous or anything._

Glace honestly didn't know if she wanted to bolt or remain backed up against the wall. Sonata did say that this haze supposedly was harmless, but Glace couldn't shake the feeling that it was watching her and waiting for her to make the first move. She didn't even know why she thought that; it had no semblance of sentience. It only drifted out of the tear and crawled along the ground a few inches away from the rip like dry ice would when submerged in water. It didn't go any further than that, seemingly satisfied with staying close to its origin.

 _Well there you go, Glace! As soon as you're ready, you can just use that tear to get to Ker. Easy as that. It helps seeing all of those tears, doesn't it?_

 _Somewhat._

 _Well I'll let you see them whenever we go dimension hopping then. I bet it beats me telling you to wander around and wave your claws around before you find what you're looking for._

 _Maybe._

Glace took in a deep breath as she peered deeper into the tear. She couldn't see anything within its contents, only that thick wispy substance that reminded her too much of those ghostly monsters from Sonata's dimension. She felt that if she dared go anywhere near that tear, it would devour her whole or maybe even possess her.

Just what kind of dimension did Ker live in exactly for a tear to even look like this?

 _It's okay, Glace. We'll be alright. Nothing will hurt us._

Glace felt a wave of calming energy come over her as Yore's words echoed softly in her head. He was right; they would be fine. They were the Keeper of Realms after all. She still didn't know exactly what that meant, but somehow the thought of that eased away the thoughts that this black mist had malevolent plans in mind.

The Weavile got to her feet, and then made her way over to the tear. Within a moment, she found herself standing right over the tear, peered down into its depths. She still couldn't see anything, only the murky fog.

Glace kneeled right before the rip. She slowly raised her claws and filled them with the ethereal energy she needed to manipulate the tear.

" _ **Ymg' don't need l' ah cahf. Y' ahor ymg' hafh."**_

Glace's heart became ice cold as the harsh and guttural sounds echoed in her ears. The noise flooded her with a darkness so deep and black that it could draw down the moon and extinguish the very sun.

All of haze within the tear swiftly shot out at Glace and wrapped around Glace's wrist, where it immediately became a ropy, root-like tendril. Glace could no longer hear Sonata and Yore within her mind. She couldn't even hear her own thoughts as every muscle in her body trembled.

" _ **Y''ve missed ymg', Yog-Sothoth."**_

Then, with a single pull, the tendril dragged Glace into the tear.

* * *

Glace collapsed onto something moist and pulpy. She felt something shudder beneath her body as soon as she hit the ground, as though the very ground were a living, sentient being very much aware of her presence. Glace scrambled to her feet in a frantic haste. However, she was only able to stay on her feet for a second before something yanked her back to the ground. Once again, the shudder went through the ground beneath her. Glace could feel an uncomfortable shudder of her own go through her body.

It was then that Glace saw she still had that tendril tied tight around her wrist. She could see it now, curling around her wrist all the more strongly, its base connected to the roots of a dead tree. At least, that's what it resembled. Something about it didn't feel right. Something about it felt alien and wrong, as though it were merely taking on a form Glace could comprehend, as if to save her from insanity.

All of her surroundings felt this way. She was in a spacious forest now, hundreds of these supposed trees surrounding her. They hid behind a thick shroud of impenetrable fog, a mist that smelt of decay and death and filled the air with ominous whispers she couldn't understand no matter how much she listened. There was no sky above her head, only an everlasting darkness that reminded her too much of the dark that had overwhelmed and tainted her just before being brought into this unsettling realm.

Glace tugged her claw away from the tendril, but she couldn't free herself. It gripped her with a frightening amount of power. When she looked back at it, she understood why. Part of the tentacle had fused into her skin. She could see it actively wriggling in her arm, moving her skin back and forth as it merged more and more of itself with her.

"Get out of me!"

Glace grabbed at the tendril with her free hand. The moment she touched its slimy skin, her palms stuck to it like glue. Little black veins bled into her ivory claws.

The Weavile screamed as she thrashed about, throwing her hands violently through the air. She could feel the tendril tugging away at her insides as she struggled, threatening to rip out her precious muscles and sinew, but she didn't care. She had to escape. She had to get away from this tendril, from this nightmarish world.

" _ **Mgah mgehye'bthnk. Y''m ymg' hafh."**_

Glace suddenly froze. There it was again. There was that voice, that voice that seemed to speak directly to her soul, or whatever she had. She knew she needed to keep struggling. She knew that voice only spelt her doom.

But she couldn't move. Something about that voice petrified every muscle in her body.

" _ **Geb c' bug."**_

The tendril suddenly ripped itself out of Glace's claws. She didn't even feel anything as the last of its ropy body left her own, only a numbing chill where it had touched her. Glace held her arm gingerly as the tendril collapsed on the ground a few feet away from her, but now with a rather large bulge in the middle of its mass, like an Ekans might appear after swallowing a Dedenne whole. Worse yet, she could see that bulge moving and something banging against the walls of the tendril's inner lining. She didn't want to imagine what that bulge could possibly be or if it had come from Glace herself.

In the end, it didn't matter what Glace wanted. The bulge in the tendril ruptured open with a revolting popping sound, and from it emerged a pair of claws. Red claws with many horrible scratches on them. Then came a black wing with a teal membrane. Then emerged a head Glace knew all too well; Sonata's head, both of her eyes whole and unharmed.

The Noivern dragged the rest of her body out of the tendril before shaking herself. Glace didn't know why she was; she couldn't see any of the supposed substance Sonata felt she was covered in. But that paled in comparison to seeing Sonata in the flesh once more. That was, presuming the Noivern even was Sonata. Maybe it wasn't her. Maybe it was something Glace should be deathly afraid of. After all, how could Sonata possibly have her own body right now? This didn't feel like the time they had their separate bodies.

The Noivern brought her gaze over to Glace. Her eyes lit up for just a moment before a wide smile broke out on her face.

"Glace, it's you again!" Sonata cheered. "Looks like you and me have separate bodies again."

Glace instantly backed away from Sonata before the Noivern could close the distance between the two, keeping a few feet of space between them.

"How do I know that you're actually Sonata?" Glace asked tersely. "How do I know you're not some monster pretending to be her?"

"Aw, what? Of course it's me! Why are you asking silly questions like that?"

"Because you came out of that thing behind you."

The Noivern looked back and finally saw the bizarre cocoon she had broken out of moments ago. Glace saw Sonata's wings shiver before she slowly inched her way back toward the tendril. Glace didn't dare follow her.

The Noivern stopped right before the still lifeless tentacle and peered into its gaping hole.

"Well I guess this would explain why everything felt really warm for no real reason…" Sonata said quietly. "And I just… crawled out of this thing?"

"Yeah. It burst open and you crawled out of it."

"Dear Arceus… no wonder why you think I'm some monster in disguise. But Glace, I swear, it's me. I don't know why I came out of this thing or why I'm me again, but I'm Sonata."

"I don't know that."

"Well then pretend I'm Sonata then. For just five minutes, pretend that you don't think I'm a monster and that I really am that Noivern that showed up your house out of nowhere."

"If you really are Sonata, then how are you in your own body again? This isn't a dream like when we all visited that tree."

Something shifted inside of the tendril. Sonata flinched back before she hurried away from the cocoon and made her way back over toward Glace. Glace didn't bother to run away from Sonata this time. The two only watched as something black and grey emerged from the depths of the tentacle. Something with golden, misty eyes that could see absolutely nothing despite being capable of seeing everything.

"Yore," Glace realized.

The Tranquill awkwardly fumbled his way out of the tendril before collapsing onto the ground. He coughed for a moment before righting himself up and shaking his feathers. He looked over at Sonata and Glace until the he haze in his eyes dissipated and his solemn clarity returned. Then, he carefully made his way over to the girls.

Glace once again felt the overwhelming need to hurry away from her supposed other selves, but she didn't. The two of them probably were the fragments she had already assimilated. She could see herself in the two of them now if she looked at them long enough, and she could no longer hear either of them in her mind. Not only that, but she still felt she had met them in a non-existent memory. She didn't think a monster could replicate that. At least, she hoped a monster couldn't. She didn't know what that tentacle actually was and what it was capable of.

Maybe it really was best to stay skeptical.

"I heard you two talking when I was inside of whatever that thing was," Yore said as he finally joined with the group. "I have to agree that I don't understand anything happening at the moment. I don't quite remember having to climb my way out of a dark and warm place last time we had our own bodies. This entire experience is rather bizarre, to say the least."

"Yeah… I mean, where are we even?" Sonata then asked. "I get this is Ker's dimension, but what exactly is this place? Is it like a forest?"

"What sort of forest has roots that can turn into tentacles, latch onto Pokémon, and then rip Pokémon out of them?" Glace asked.

"Some freaky dimension that clearly isn't anything like ours," Sonata said as she gave her surroundings a quick, uneasy glance."

"Seems rather fitting for someone as bizarre as Ker, as you describe her," Yore remarked.

"Man, I hope we can find her fast. I do _not_ want to stay in this place any longer than I have to. I mean, sure, it's great to have a body again, but if it means having to be in this freaky place…"

"I don't understand how that tentacle could make you two though. You shouldn't have your own bodies; your bodies are gone. You're both me now. What kind of dimension are we in that has tentacles that can give you both bodies even though that's impossible?"

" _ **Cahf's Iiahe Y''m dimension."**_

The three tensed as the eldritch noises echoed all around them. All paranoid thoughts of Yore and Sonata promptly vanished from Glace's mind as she drew closer to the two. They did the same and soon formed a tight huddle. Sonata wrapped her wings around Glace and Yore and held them close to her body, but didn't cover their faces. She only kept them in her protective embrace so tightly that Glace could feel the Noivern's quickening heart rate. The three darted their eyes about, searching for that dreadful voice's owner, but found themselves alone. Only the forest provided them company, as dead and dreary as before. However, Glace couldn't help but notice that the fog shrouding the trees had become darker, exactly like that haze that she had seen oozing out of that tear.

" _ **H's vulgtmnah l' ymg' mgr'luh ephaii."**_

Glace blinked, and suddenly there was something standing a few feet away from her. Something black and tall. Something that had no distinguishable form. Some that was actually the fog itself, not something that only dwelled in it.

Sonata shrieked at the sudden appearance of the creature. She backpedaled, dragging Glace and Yore with her. The two of them couldn't react fast enough and stumbled back onto the Noivern's feet, instantly causing her to trip over herself and take the others with her.

Glace's eyes snapped shut as soon as her head hit the ground. One second later, they opened back up.

The monster had removed all distance between it and the group. Now it stood right over her with its shapeless form, right over everyone. Glace saw no face in the creature; she only saw a black hole that was more than willing to drag her into its abysmal depths.

" _ **H''s vulgtmnah l' ymg' mgr'luh ephaii, Yog-Sothoth."**_

The three remained petrified on the ground, each of them trembling and holding each other like helpless children. Glace knew she needed to attack this entity if she wanted to live. She knew she could strike it right now and she could buy herself a few seconds of time. But she couldn't. The entity's gaze froze her, paralyzed her, made it impossible to do anything more than wallow in the dread coursing through her. She didn't even think she could hurt it even if she wanted to; it was the mist after all. You can't hurt mist.

The faceless one continued to loom over the three. The mist surrounding the forest slowly seeped into the entity, solidifying its vague, wispy appearance. The mist in the air thinned as the entity took on a more tangible form that Glace actually felt she could touch. But she still couldn't lash out. It still froze her there with the black hole that was its face. She could see something slithering within it every few seconds now, something yellow and with a toothy smile. What could be moving within that hole, Glace didn't know. She didn't want to know.

All of the mist disappeared, and the entity's form solidified completely. Glace could only remain on the ground, collapsed with Yore and Sonata in their feeble pile, and stare up at the monster looming over them.

" _ **I've been waiting for you."**_

Glace gawked. She had heard this voice before. Now that the noise resembled an actual, coherent language and not a jumbled mess of sounds, she realized she had heard this voice from somewhere in the distant past. Some time ago in a memory she couldn't recall, she had heard this voice speak to her.

Glace felt an uncomfortable shiver go down her spine as this dawned upon her. She knew she had never met this monster before; she could never forget something as unsettling as this abomination. There was only one way she could possibly know this creature if so.

"Ker…?" Glace asked feebly. "Are you… are you Ker?"

An odd, chortling sound echoed from the monster, something Glace thought was supposed to be a laugh.

" _ **Ah so you can only understand me when I speak in mortal tongue. Yog-Sothoth really did succeed in making you mortals."**_

"I don't understand what you're saying," Glace said as she shirked back. "Ker, what do you mean by 'mortal tongue'?"

More of the unsettling noises emitted from the being. It drew closer to the three. None of them dared to move as the entity gazed down at them with its hollow face.

" _ **My name isn't Ker. She and I might be similar for far too many reasons, but I'm not her. Now that you understand that, I want you to talk to me, Yog-Sothoth spawn. It has been some time. I want to know of the progress of that plan Yog-Sothoth made, to know if it has been providing success."**_

"What plan?" Glace asked with a grim frown.

" _ **Ah, you know very well what I mean. You have a plan to find all of the other spawn so you can be whole again. You want to do all of this because you want to preserve all of the dimensions in all of existence."**_

"I don't know what you're talking about."

" _ **Ah, but you do. Yog-Sothoth told each of you to become one again, and now that is what you're doing. That is why two of the spawn were inside you until I ripped them out, Weavile."**_

Glace felt her insides twist into a knot. Based on the increasingly grim expressions on Yore and Sonata's faces, she imagined they felt the same. She didn't even know how she was able to keep talking. Just being in the presence of this unsettling entity seemed to mute every single one of her thoughts.

The being let out another chortled laugh.

" _ **It is amusing to see you consumed with mortal dread. Yog-Sothoth always wondered how it felt to be filled with such an unrelenting feeling. Yog-Sothoth could never feel it within itself, no matter the circumstances you found itself in. But now you Yog-Sothoth spawn understand it while in those mortal bodies. Isn't it such a fascinating little thing? It strips you down to your most vulnerable, powerless self, yet also makes you more alive than you ever were before…"**_

"Who are you?" Glace asked.

" _ **Ketetetet. You really don't remember me. I wondered if you spawn would keep any of Yog-Sothoth's memories."**_

"Who… who are you?" Glace asked again with increasingly faltering strength, feeling her body tremble more with each word the creature spoke.

The monster stepped away from the Weavile, finally allowing her to breathe. She watched as the creature made its way before one of the many trees of the vicinity before glancing back at her. Even though it lacked any semblance of a mouth, Glace felt it was shooting her a grin.

" _ **I have many names. I'm sure in your time masquerading as mortals, you have heard of at least one of them."**_

The abomination stepped behind the tree, vanishing from sight.

A shorter, bipedal figure cloaked in the very darkness that shrouded the night emerged from the other side of the tree. Two large, circular eyes the color of blood locked onto Glace. They radiated with the light of a thousand burning pyres.

" _ **I have existed since the moment life began. In those eons ago, I always existed, living within the darkness of the mind as an unknown mortals obeyed without a second thought. It was only when mortals gained self-awareness and their minds ascended from the primal did they finally wonder who I was.**_

" _ **They gave me names, those mortals, to rationalize where I had come from, to justify why I made them act in certain ways. They gave me names, masks to wear. Different times, different dimension, different species… they all gave me masks. They gave me numerous masks, but all are me."**_

The cloaked one went behind another tree. Another creature swooped out of the other side. A creature Glace actually recognized; a Darkrai. However, unlike other Darkrai, this one seemed to be an emitting an ominous haze that made her seem like a living, black flame. The red growth around its neck seemed longer and more jagged, and the white wisps streaming from its head frayed out in multiple directions. The bottom of its body, normally supposed to resemble a tattered cloak or dress, now seemed to hold multiple tendrils. Its single, exposed eye was no longer blue as Glace had seen it depicted in multiple illustrations. Now it was a frightening black that somehow emitted an otherworldly glow.

" _ **Some of them call me Erebus, the darkness of existence. Some of them call me Nyx, the mother of deities that bring suffering and pain to all mortals."**_

The demonic Darkrai disappeared behind yet another tree, and then out came a Seviper-like creature with six yellow eyes and a long, winding body that could encircle the three of the fragments with ease.

" _ **There are countless other names. Set. L'rog'g. Yveltal. Giratina. The Crawling Chaos. The Faceless God. I obtain a new mask every moment, a new form to allow me to walk amongst the mortals as they desire me to. However, you can call me by one particular name, a name I treasure above all."**_

The creature slithered behind the tree. Glace anticipated the next creature, whatever horrifying, demented form this being could conjure up next, but no creature emerged from the other side of the tree. Only the empty forest remained around her, Yore, and Sonata, the shapeshifter nowhere to be found.

" _ **That name is Nyarlathotep."**_

Glace blinked, and then it was right there in front of her. Right there, sitting right in front of her, now as a Sableye without gemstones for eyes. Now where the jewels used to be were black holes emitting a pinpoint of white light. Glace couldn't stop herself from screaming and thrashing about in a desperate escape to free herself from the tangled mess she found herself in.

She had to get away from this monster, whatever it was. It didn't matter if Ker was here; she had to leave. She couldn't be here with this thing.

Because this thing, with its incomprehensible name, was the screams you heard in the middle of the night, the flicker in those Flareon's eyes right before they burned you alive, the skittering you hear echoing around you when you're in that dark cave all alone, that blur you see in the corner of your eye that's gone when you give it a second look, the things that live deep beneath the ocean's black waves that are watching you with their cold eyes and are waiting for the perfect moment to drag you down into the black where you can't even scream as your lungs burn like fire, the home you can't ever go back to because it's dripping with the blood that you drew with your own claws and everyone there hates you because they know that you're dangerous and a monster and a-

" _ **Ah, there's no need to run. I won't be frightening you any longer. I have had my fill of your dread. So settle down, Yog-Sothoth spawn, and engage in a friendly conversation with me as Yog-Sothoth and I always did."**_

"I'm… I'm not s-s-s-staying here," Glace managed to spit out. "I don't… don't want to ta… talk."

" _ **I'll bring you dear Ker if you stay, just for a little while. I know that you need her to complete your plan. I promise I will bring you no further distress of any sort if you would remain here for a moment of your time, to provide me company once more."**_

Glace stopped struggling and looked back at the demented creature. This monster knew Ker? It made sense now when Glace thought about it; Glace had asked this monster if it was Ker. It could easily deduce from that alone that Glace was looking for the Sableye, and it had implicated before that it knew her when it said the two of them were similar to each other.

But did that really mean anything? Just because this thing knew Ker's name didn't mean that it actually knew anything about her. It could easily be fabricating everything to keep Glace in this twisted little realm that seemed to be growing darker and darker ever moment.

"You… you don't mean that," Glace remarked as she shot the entity a weak glare. "You don't… don't even know K-Ker."

" _ **Oh, but I do. Ker, the precious Sableye that she is. Or rather, my precious one who merely appears as a Sableye. Can only thrive through devouring the fear of other mortals. So very much like me, so very little like how I knew her before Yog-Sothoth made each of you. You'll never find her if you search for her own your own; she's hardly ever here. You need me to find her. I always know where she is, when she is, why she is, what she is, how she is."**_

Glace frowned grimly. That Sableye the entity described did sound like Ker, even though she knew very little about the Sableye already. Sonata had said Ker was dead but not quite, as well as being "apathetic" to everything. And while Glace didn't like the thought of staying with this creature for another second, she knew she needed Ker. She needed all of her other selves, whether she liked it or not. And if this entity was right and it was the only who could honestly track down Ker…

"And how… how do I know you're not lying about ev…everything?" Glace asked.

The eyeless Sableye grinned and snickered a noise that sounded like bones snapping.

 ** _"You can't."_**

"Then h-how am I supposed to trust you?" Glace asked with a grim scowl.

 ** _"You do what all mortals do when when faced with an unknown; you force yourself to believe._** _ **That is all mortals can do when they cannot understand the nature of reality and find themselves desperately grasping for explanations and answers. The stubborn belief of something they're doing has meaning is the only true power mortals have, the power to warp and shape their entire reality into something that isn't even true. Perhaps because you're emulating mortals, you can emulate that power as well and see if it provides you the same results."**_

Glace didn't have any idea of what to make of the entity's ramblings. No matter how much she dwelled in its words, she couldn't parse any meaning from them. It sounded like the gibberish the hatchling Sneasel made before they could speak actual words.

"Let's just trust him for now, Glace."

The Weavile looked over to see Sonata staring back at her. The Noivern's wings quivered and it seemed to take a large amount of effort just for her to stay still, but Sonata kept her voice steady.

"Let's just see what happens," Sonata said. "I honestly don't know where to even find Ker around here. I get this weird feeling that it's okay to trust him. I mean, I know that's probably the stupidest thing you've heard since all you have to do is look at him to get why that's a bad idea. But I mean… what else are we going to do anyway?"

"Leave," Glace answered flippantly.

"Well okay yeah, we can do that. But I mean, what's the worst that can happen if we stay here and talk for a while?"

"I really don't want to imagine that, Sonata. I… I don't."

"I think I agree with Sonata," Yore then spoke as he got to his feet. "Staying here isn't exactly pleasant and I feel as though something is personally attacking my mind, we do need to find Ker. If this entitysays he can retrieve Ker for us, then maybe we should humor him for a while. See what happens."

Yore drew closer and then put his beak right next to Glace's ear.

"And if all goes poorly, then we'll leave," he said in a tiny whisper. "We can escape from here before that entity can ever stop us. I'll personally make sure I take you with me as I leave; I'm sure I can fly fast enough to escape from that entity."

Glace sighed. So both of her selves thought that they should stay with the demon sitting before them, watching them the same way someone might watch a group of Durant driving away a Heatmor from the nest. Glace wasn't sure how much longer she could stand being around that unsettling entity, whatever it was supposed to be.

However, her other selves had valid points. They did need Ker and if this was the way to get her, then this was what they had to do. And if it really was a trap, then Glace sincerely hoped that Yore meant it when he said he would help her escape.

"Alright," Glace said after a while. "Look Knee… Knee-Are… Knee-Are-Let..."

" _ **Nyarlathotep."**_

"Yeah that," Glace said as she looked back at the false Sableye. "We'll talk to you for a while just like you want. But after that, you bring Ker here, got it?"

" _ **Of course. You have nothing to worry about."**_

Glace highly doubted that, but she quickly shoved the thought away. She had to believe that this entity really wasn't as malevolent as it appeared. She had to earnestly think it wanted nothing more than to engage in friendly chatter. If she didn't think that, the paranoid thoughts would return, along with the crippling stuttering that had made her feel so weak and powerless.

" _ **Now then, now that you've finally settled, we can finally talk. I notice that there are three assimilated together. I must admit I'm surprised; I would have thought you would come here after you found at least five more."**_

"We found another one that isn't with us right now," Glace answered. "We just sent her after two of the other fragments because she didn't want to be assimilated."

" _ **So you did. Well then, for your sake, I hope that she doesn't run far away to another dimension where you will never find her. I might always know of Ker's whereabouts, but the rest of you spawn, not quite so."**_

"She's not going to abandon us," Glace said curtly. "She'll do her job. She knows how important all of this is."

" _ **Ketetetet. There it is. There's that stubborn belief in a false reality. I knew you could emulate it."**_

Glace didn't know what she wanted to say to that. She didn't even know if there was a proper way to respond to that perplexing statement. The more and more she talked to this monster, the less and less Glace felt she understood anything.

" _ **It seems Yog-Sothoth's plan has been providing some success, though not as quickly as I had imagined."**_

"It's hard to find them sometimes," Sonata argued, but without the usual confidence in her voice. "I know where to go and I know what part of the dimension they're in and what they look like, but it still takes a while to find them. Especially if they're in a big city like Yore was. And then getting them to leave is another story…"

" _ **Of course it is. Yog-Sothoth knew it would be difficult for all of you to become one. To shatter your flimsy narratives and show you the true reality of the situation you never want to see was never thought to be simple. I told Yog-Sothoth this, but Yog-Sothoth created all of you anyway. Yog-Sothoth said you would see the plan through to the end."**_

"I guess. But you know, why do you keep saying that Yog-Sot… Yog-Sothought… whatever that name you just said made us?" Sonata then asked. "I thought that our old self was called Keeper of Realms. I mean, that's what it was called in that dream with the tree."

The Sableye's grin dropped into a dark scowl. The tiny lights in its eyes flickered like a candle flame in the wind.

" _ **Such a trite name that name is, Keeper of Realms. I've always detested that name. It speaks ill of Yog-Sothoth."**_

"So… they're the same thing?" Sonata asked. "Keeper of Realms and Yog… whatever the name is, are the same?"

" _ **Quite unfortunately, yes. Yog-Sothoth has many masks and names just as I do, of course not nearly as numerous as me, and that deplorable name is one of them."**_

The entity brooded in the thought of the supposedly insulting name, fuming in silence. Glace thought she could feel the ground around her shaking the same way her claws shook the rare times she felt consumed with an unrelenting fury. The Weavile tried to ignore the sensation, but it was a bit difficult seeing as how there was nowhere she could go that could offer her relief from the shuddering.

"But what exactly are we?" Yore then spoke up, speaking far more clearly than Sonata and Glace combined and holding an immoveable posture.

The shaking stopped. The Sableye glanced over at Yore, a bemused glimmer in its eyes now. Though the sight of the Sableye did make Glace's heart skip a beat, Yore didn't falter. He only kept his stern gaze locked onto the demon.

"Ever since I left my dimension, I've been trying to understand exactly who we are," Yore explained. "There were hints, such as when I saw Keeper of Realms in a dream with a tree seemingly as large as a world, but never concrete answers. However, from the way, you talk, you seem to be rather acquainted with our old self."

" _ **I was. Despite our differences, Yog-Sothoth and I did engage in many conversations. Yog-Sothoth often visited here with a mask or I would visit Yog-Sothoth with a mask of my own."**_

"Then can you tell me exactly who that is?" Yore asked. "I told myself that I wouldn't continue collecting the fragments unless I made an effort to find the meaning behind all of it. There is no reason to continue finding the others if I don't understand why I am even doing it. I'd rather not blindly believe and follow someone."

The Sableye made that awful snickering sound again as the devious grin broke out on its face that seemed to plot a million evil plans at once. Glace readied herself to leave the dimension at a moment's notice. She would be gone before that demon even moved.

" _ **You claim you don't want to blindly believe anything, and yet, that is what you have always done as a nearly mortal. If something sounds logical and momentarily explains your reality, you accept it without question. If someone you respect says something that validates or compliments your flimsy narrative, you accept it without question."**_

"I never did that," Yore stated firmly. "Maybe when I was younger, but not after I became an adult. I try to think through my philosophy before deciding what I believe, even allowing myself a long time to think over it. Then also, whenever I think of something new, I try it out for a while to see if it goes away in time. I test it, to see if it might have merit."

" _ **Ketetetetet. If that really is true, maybe you are somewhat better than most mortals. But you will always live by a fragile narrative, Tranquill spawn. Every truth you think you hold is only something you have to make reality comfortable for you. You can never stop being that way. That is the very definition of being a mortal."**_

"I thought the definition of mortal was that you'll die one day," Sonata added in a sheepish tone.

 _ **"Oh, but there is more than one definition of mortality. They're as numerous as the stars in the sky."**_

"It doesn't matter," Yore then said. "You can say what you want, but in the end, I do want to know why I am doing all of this. I want to know who I was and why I'm the one stopping all of the dimensions from collapsing on each other."

The Sableye's grin widened a bit as a short laugh echoed out of its mouth. Yore remained steadfast where he stood, his feathers flat against his body and his wings tucked comfortably into his body.

" _ **Knowing who Yog-Sothoth is won't help you. You won't even be able to comprehend Yog-Sothoth when you can't do the same with me."**_

"You're a shapeshifting entity that takes on the form of different deities throughout the dimensions," Yore said without hesitation. "I'm sure there's more to it than that, but that is what it comes down to, isn't it? You're a being that has no true face, only endless masks, as you call them."

More snickers from the Sableye. It shook its head before it grinned as wide as ever.

" _ **Alright, I'll tell you who Yog-Sothoth if you insist that much. I'll tarnish your false narrative just a small amount."**_

The Sableye took one of its claws and drew something into the dirt. The three fragments inched forward toward the developing picture, but made sure to keep their distance from the demon. Despite how it had kept its word about not harming them, there was still an oppressive air surrounding the creature. Getting too close to it suddenly made breathing difficult.

When the Sableye removed its claw from the ground, it revealed a crude drawing of a large tree with sprawling branches that reached in every direction. Countless vines dangled from the branches that seemed caught up in an invisible breeze. It didn't take Glace to recognize what the demon had created, however basic it was.

"This is that tree we saw our old self at," Glace realized.

" _ **This is Yog-Sothoth. This is where Yog-Sothoth dwells just as how this is where I dwell."**_

"But this is a tree," Glace said. "When we were in that dream, our old self was a Sawsbuck-like creature. This tree was only a part of that dream, like a background."

" _ **Ketetetet. You see? You understand so little. That tree, as you so call it, is Yog-Sothoth. That creature you saw, Xerneas undoubtedly, was a mask."**_

"But it's a tree…" Glace said with a cautious, slow tone. "Trees aren't alive. They just exist. Trees can't split apart to make Pokémon…"

" _ **Ketetetet. Typical mortal reaction."**_

"I think I understand," Yore then said collectively. "This tree is our old self. That creature, Xerneas, was only something the tree projected to talk to that Altaria. Because… it can't talk as that tree. It needs a mask to talk. Of course, how that Altaria was able to get to that dimension in the first place is beyond me."

" _ **A sufficient enough explanation. Now then, onto exactly what Yog-Sothoth is in regards to mortals. Yog-Sothoth is the All-In-One and One-In-All. All of space and time are known to Yog-Sothoth. Yog-Sothoth knows what has happened, what is happening right now, and what will happen. No secret can be kept from Yog-Sothoth."**_

"So you mean that we're basically the fragments of Arceus?" Sonata asked with an almost gleeful tone. "Is that who we really are? We're basically the creators of the universe? Arceus really does exist?"

" _ **Ah, so easy to think you are, but you are not. This Arceus you speak of, that is a projection of Azathoth. Azathoth, blind and idiotic, dead but dreaming outside of all realities. He is of little importance."**_

"But if he's technically Arceus, then didn't he create everything?" Sonata asked. "That sounds pretty important."

" _ **Ketetet. I suppose Azathoth did in your mortal minds. That is the story all of you mortals weaved together, that amusing little narrative."**_

"So… did he then?"

" _ **Azathoth did in your minds, and that is all that matters to you mortals. That is the only answer you need."**_

"But what does that even mean?"

The Sableye wouldn't respond, only grinning to itself with overwhelming deviance, as if it had played a great prank on the Noivern. Glace could see Sonata struggling to say something to the demon, maybe to argue more with it, but she could never say the words. She could only look at the Sableye with an almost helpless expression.

"So we govern all of time and space, along with every single dimension," Yore then said. "Does that mean that we were once Dialga and Palkia? Those two are the ones that governed those aspects of reality, according to the myths of my dimension."

" _ **Those two are masks of Yog-Sothoth, yes."**_

"I see," Yore said with a slow nod. "I think I'm starting to understand everything a little better now."

 _ **"Oh, but you don't. You are only taking bits and pieces of my information to make it conform to your skewed perspective of reality."**_

Yore ruffled his feathers and shook his tail, but didn't respond. He only glanced down at the drawing for a moment before bringing his gaze back to the Sableye.

"There is something I don't understand about all of this, despite everything you've told me," Yore stated.

" _ **There always is."**_

"Why did our old self make us to stop the destruction of the dimensions? Why did it split up into us instead of doing fixing the problem as itself? It had to be quite powerful if it's as all-seeing as you claim it is."

 _ **"Ah, there it is. There's the question I was waiting for."**_

The Sableye drew a circle around the tree. Then, it drew dozens more circles inches away from the bubbled tree. Each of these circles connected with one another, sharing a piece of their border with another, but never overlapping each other. They all touched, but never invaded the other's inner space. They formed a great circle of their own around the tree, forever out of its reach.

" _ **Yog-Sothoth is locked outside of all realities. Yog-Sothoth must remain here, forever locked away. But that is the very reason Yog-Sothoth is the All-Seer. By being outside of all realities, fabricated and genuine, Yog-Sothoth can see them all at once. It's as you see here. The dimensions circle Yog-Sothoth constantly, never touching Yog-Sothoth, but always letting Yog-Sothoth see into them."**_

"So we were made because our old self can't actually leave wherever it is," Yore realized. "It's only by becoming mortals can it actually do anything."

" _ **Yesssss."**_

"So by that logic… does that mean that by becoming one, we fragments will finally allow our old self a way into reality? And in doing so, it can actually do something about the tears?"

" _ **Yesssss."**_

Yore stood there wordlessly. Glace couldn't tell what he was thinking behind his always tranquil, pensive eyes. She imagined he must have been in deep thought, but exactly what those thoughts were, Glace couldn't imagine. All of those thoughts could have been malicious threats and she never would have been able to see it.

"I think that's all I want to ask about," Yore then said after a while. "You've answered all of the questions I have about my old self. I feel a better sense of clarity and purpose now that I know exactly why I exist and who I used to be."

The Sableye didn't say anything, choosing only to keep its devious grin. It cleared away the sketch with a motion of its claw, and then focused its gaze on the fragments.

" _ **I've also had my fill from our conversation. You've provided me everything I wanted to know regarding the success of Yog-Sothoth's plan."**_

"So then that means you're going to get Ker for us now, right?" Glace asked with a cautious tone.

" _ **Of course. I know how important she is to you Yog-Sothoth spawn."**_

Glace sighed. So it seemed that this monster really didn't have any ill intent. It really did only want to talk to her and the others. Why it had wanted to talk to them in the first place, Glace still didn't know. If it really was being truthful in saying that it was acquainted with their old self, then it made sense. However, maybe this monster had only said that to gain their trust. After all, nothing about the creature seemed entirely trustworthy. After all, what kind of entity that thrived on fear and could turn into multiple frightening creatures could be considered truthful?

She just had to hope that this hadn't been a mistake. She didn't see what harm could have come from telling the demon of the progress of their plan, especially when it already seemed aware of said plan, but that didn't mean anything. Maybe this entity knew something Glace couldn't possibly imagine.

But it was too late now. The damage was done. She couldn't undo anything. She only had to live with it and hope that the monster would bring her Ker.

Glace watched the Sableye and waited for it to disappear, just as it always had whenever it wanted to change forms or teleport around the dimension. However, the creature never moved. It only sat there in front of her and the other fragments, still grinning and watching them with a sort of amusement Glace found unnerving on a deep and personal level.

"Aren't you going to get Ker?" Glace asked.

" _ **Ah don't worry. She will be here soon. I'm bringing her here right now."**_

"But you're still here…" Glace stated quietly. "You haven't moved at all."

The Sableye snickered. It was brief, but when that awful creature laughed, every single branch of every single tree in the vicinity shook, as if a strong gale had blown through. Glace flinched and backed into Sonata's chest, nearly knocking the Noivern over. Even Yore, who had been standing so tall and resolutely before, stepped back into the feeble huddle.

" _ **You still understand so little, Yog-Sothoth spawn. Despite everything you've seen and everything I've said to you… your narrative still remains unchanged."**_


	11. I Never Want This To End

A little Espurr woke up in her cozy little bed. She didn't know why she had woken up; she felt she could use another hour of sleep. Her mind still felt fuzzy and her eyelids wanted to stay closed. Her body didn't even want to leave the warm comfort of her blankets.

The Espurr glanced to her side. She could just barely see the first rays of dawn glaring down into her room through the windows near her bed. So that had been the reason. For whatever reason, the moment the sun came out, she would instantly awaken from any sort of slumber she was in. She didn't know why that was so. Perhaps it was a sort of psychic-type trait. Her own parents were the same way and so were a few other psychics she knew. Maybe it had to do with how they were the opposite of the dark-types, who seemingly became alert the moment the sun set behind the horizon.

It didn't matter in the end, however. She did have school in the next couple of hours; she decided it was best to ready herself for the day if she was already up and about.

The Espurr pulled off the covers and got out of bed before heading toward the pantry in the other room. What should she have for breakfast today? She did have a few oran and pecha berries. Maybe she could mix the two together and have a nice berry salad with them. After all, the sweetness of the pecha did go quite well with the myriad tastes of the oran. Or maybe she could have some bread with a bit of pecha jam smeared on top of it. Yes, that would also be quite lovely. Or maybe her parents would already be down there waiting for her with a nice bowl of…

The Espurr stopped the moment she entered the other room in her house. There, sitting at her table, was a Sableye. She could hear the Sableye rolling something along the table's surface, but she couldn't see what because the Sableye had its back to her. But that was good news for her, because that meant that she could hurry out of her house if she really wanted to. The Sableye would have never known she was there. But maybe she didn't. She did like ghost-types after all. She knew she should have been scared of them, given easily those ghost could hurt her, but she never was. There was something fascinating to be found in their perpetually sinister grins and how you could touch them and your paw would go right through them.

Still, why was there a Sableye in her house? She didn't know of any Sableye in the village. Not only that, but ghost-types didn't usually wander about in broad daylight, even if the day had barely started.

So why was this Sableye here? Who was it even? And why would it come her home of all-

"Oh, hello there. Trying to hide from me?"

The Espurr stiffened. The Sableye turned her head, allowing the Espurr to finally see its face. Quite surprisingly, this Sableye didn't have a menacing grin stretched across her face. She only had a pleasant one that easily complemented her bizarrely agreeable voice.

"I see you're finally awake," the Sableye said. "I was wondering when you were going to wake up."

"Umm, who are you, Miss Sableye?" the Espurr asked as she rubbed at one of her ears.

"Oh, me? Well let's see… oh, who am I, who am I?" the Sableye wondered aloud as she swung her legs back in forth in her seat. "Oh yeah, I'm Ker."

"What's Ker?"

"It's my name! What else would it be?"

"That's weird. Isn't your name Sableye?"

A low frown broke through the Sableye's friendly smile. She seemed to just barely resist groaning, if ghost-types could even do that.

"Let me guess. Your name's Espurr, isn't it?" the Sableye asked dully.

"Yeah, it is."

"Wow. This place is worse than I thought. You guys have the most unimaginative names. I mean really, what if there's another Espurr in your village? Do I just call you Espurr One and the other one Espurr Two?"

Espurr didn't know how to respond to that. This Sableye sure was a strange one undoubtedly. She didn't know if she was creepy though, now that she had spent a bit more time with her. Nothing about her seemed very threatening, even if some of the things she rambled on about didn't make any semblance of sense.

The Sableye turned away. She hissed something that Espurr couldn't hear before looking back at her with a little grin.

"Well anyway, I'm just someone passing on by through your town," Ker then said. "You could say I'm a wanderer that goes all around the continents. Been traveling all night and I wanted to stop somewhere for a little while. Your parents let me in a little while ago, but they didn't get to tell you because they had to go to the market or something like that. So sorry if I scared you or something like that! I just didn't want to show up in your room and suddenly announce I'm here and make you think I'm going to rip out your soul or something. I might be a ghost, but I'm not evil."

The Sableye giggled. Espurr couldn't help but giggle as well. There was just something so playful in that laugh.

"Well anyway, how about I offer you some company until your parents get back?" Ker then offered. "Like how about we eat breakfast together? I'm sure by the time we'll finish, your parents will be home again and then we can talk to them too."

Espurr nodded. There really wasn't a reason to be scared. Many Pokémon came in and out of the village all of the time. This wasn't even the first time Espurr's parents had allowed a guest to visit. They had done this plenty of times, though none of them had been ghost-types and they usually didn't leave her all alone with the guest. However, there was nothing to worry about with this Sableye. She seemed perfectly harmless, if a bit strange, just like quite a number of visitors actually.

Espurr went over to the table before sitting down in a seat opposite to the Sableye. She could now see that the object Ker was rolling around on the table was one of the many pecha perries in a basket that served as the centerpiece. Ker moved the berry delicately with a single claw, somehow not puncturing it with her sharp tip.

"So Espurr, why are you awake so bright and early in the morning? Everyone else in this village is asleep," Ker asked pleasantly. "Well except for some merchants and your parents, of course."

"I always get up at dawn," Espurr replied as she took out a pecha berry from the pile. "And I'm here because I want to eat breakfast before I go to school."

"Oh, you have school, do you? What do you do at school?"

"Anything really. Sometimes I learn about the different types of Pokémon like water -types or electric-types. Sometimes I learn about how to take care of trees. And then sometimes I learn about the other continents in the world."

"Uh huh. Sounds fascinating. I remember when I used to be in school. Used to learn everything you do, but I learned about more interesting things too, like how to make sculptures out of planks of wood."

"You can do that even though you're a ghost?"

"Oh yeah. How would I even be sitting here if I couldn't be tangible part of the time? I'm just like the rest of you types, except I don't have to let things like walls or doors get in my way. I just go right through them whenever I want."

"What does it feel like to go through walls? Does it hurt?"

"Nah, it doesn't hurt. It's like… oh, how to put this? You ever gone swimming before?"

"Yeah, I did once."

"Alright, and you've dived down far enough so that your whole body goes underwater, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well it's like that. Phasing through walls for me is like you going underwater. It doesn't hurt, but everything around you feels a little different. You get what I mean now?"

"Yeah, I think I do. And you can do this as much as you want?"

"Of course! If I really want to, I can stay inside of a wall all day. I could be in your ceiling for hours and hours, and I would never feel like I need to leave. I don't have to 'breathe', if we're going to use my underwater analogy."

Espurr smiled a little. It seemed Ker really was a nice ghost-type with interesting things to say after all, just like those Ghastly that she had seen that time long ago. They were just a little odd and loved to spook others. But deep down, they were as friendly as all of her friends and neighbors.

Espurr took a bite out of her pecha berry. Its overwhelming sweetness flooded into her mouth, making her ears perk up for just a moment. Espurr could hear the Sableye snickering as soon as she swallowed the fruit, but she made no remarks. She only sat there, still rolling her berry back and forth across the table.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Espurr then asked as she ate the rest of her berry.

"In a little bit," Ker replied. "In a little bit. I just like to roll this berry around, really. There's something just so mesmerizing about it. Just toying with it is so fascinating."

"That sounds a little like how a prank works. You like pranks?"

"Oh yes, I do," Ker said with a devious grin that showed off all of her teeth. "I love them. Love setting them up with so much care and love, carefully luring my victim into them, making them think all is fine and dandy with the world, making them comfortable without them ever doubting a thing, and then… _taking it all away_."

Espurr froze for a moment. Something didn't seem right about what Ker had just said. Even though it had been for a split second, Espurr could have sworn that she heard a devious laugh echo in the room. But who could have been laughing? Ker certainly wasn't laughing; she was only playing with that berry.

As Espurr wondered this, the Sableye finally stopped rolling the berry. She picked it up between two of her claws, and then ate the entire thing in one bite.

"So yeah, I like pranks," Ker said with a little giggle. "Do you like pranks, Espurr?"

"Y-Yeah! Not a whole lot, but I do a little," Espurr quickly blurted out. "I like putting thoughts in my classmates' heads and making them think some legendary Pokémon is talking to them."

"Oh, sounds like a fun little prank! I do something like that sometimes. Like one time I hid in a wall and told everyone in the room that I was Giratina and that I was going to drag them down to the Reverse Dimension or something like that."

The Sableye took another berry out of the basket and then ate it all with one bite. Espurr laughed a little when she saw that. There was nothing to be anxious about. She had probably imagined that laugh.

Espurr grabbed another pecha from the basket and bit into it. Her ears once again perked up as warmth filled her mouth and spread to her cheeks. She couldn't resist eating it all the more quickly. Its sweetness was simply so addicting. Within seconds, Espurr finished the berry and didn't hesitate to grab another one before gobbling it up just as quickly as the last one.

"Hah. You really like those pecha berries, don't you?" Ker asked.

"Yep! They're my favorite berry in the whole wide world!" Espurr said as soon as she swallowed the berry bits in her mouth.

""Yeah, they're really sweet, aren't they?"

"Mmmhmm!"

"And they're really soft too, aren't they?"

"Mmmhmmm!"

Espurr reached for another berry and sank her teeth into it without wasting a second. She could hear Ker laughing to herself before she too picked up a berry from the pile. However, she didn't eat it. She only put it on the table and rolled it along the surface with a single claw, just as she had been before. The only difference between then and now was that now Ker's claw tip dug deep into the pecha's skin. Espurr could actually see some of the juice trickling out of the hole and onto the table.

Espurr stopped eating when she saw the juice. The juice wasn't the usual pale, pink color. It was a much darker pink now, borderline purple. Espurr couldn't understand why. She had never seen a pecha with that shade of color.

Ker stopped rolling the berry beneath her hand. She looked over at the Espurr and grinned in a friendly, innocent way.

"What's the matter, Espurr?" Ker asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost, and not just me."

"That juice is purple," Espurr stated as she pointed at the Sableye's berry. "Pechas don't have purple juice."

"Oh, they don't? Well I guess that would make sense. The thing isn't purple after all. Then again, apple juice is like gold even though apples are red and white."

"I think it might be rotten. Oh no! Mommy and daddy told me never to eat rotten pechas! They said it makes your tummy hurt and-"

"Oh don't worry, those things weren't rotten."

"Th-They weren't?"

"Nope!"

A huge, devious grin broke out on the Sableye's face. She flicked her berry at Espurr, who just barely caught it in her stubby paws.

" _They were payapa berries."_

Suddenly, Espurr was no longer holding a heart-shaped fruit in her paws. Now it was an odd, dark pink berry that looked like two orbs put together. Espurr's insides turned ice cold as she stared at the berry in her trembling paws. The world around her blurred into a chaotic mesh of colors that held no meaning as this numbing, tingling sensation filled her mouth.

Espurr dropped the berry and hurried away from the table. She only made it about two feet before her legs gave out from her and she tumbled to the floor. Something constricted her chest and lungs as her eyes filled with water.

She tried to get up, but her legs wouldn't listen to her. She could only lay there on the ground, the tingling sensation spreading down her throat and into the rest of her body with unsettling haste.

"It hurts, doesn't it?"

The Espurr looked up to see the Sableye crouched right in front of her, still wearing that evil grin. Ker giggled as she poked one of the Espurr's cheeks. Espurr shuddered at the touch; the Sableye's touch was deathly cold.

"You know, I'm surprised you didn't catch on to my trick," Ker said. "With you being a psychic and all, I figured you'd see through such a simple ghost illusion. But then again, you're just a stupid kid, so I really shouldn't be surprised. And it's not like you can read my mind anyway…"

"Wh-Why…?" Espurr asked with a whimper. "Why… Why did you do this?"

"Why? Oh, because it's fun. Because there's hardly anything more delicious than the dread someone feels when they're dying. Because you are dying now, you know. You ate just enough of those stupid berries for it to be toxic."

So she really was going to die. How could have been so stupid? She should have tasted the difference between her usual pecha berries and the payapa berries. She should have known something wasn't right.

Now she was going to die. She was going to die here and she would never see her parents or friends again.

Espurr felt Ker grab her tiny body and drag her toward her. Espurr shuddered even more as the Sableye wrapped both of her arms around her body like she was trying to hug her. The corners of Espurr's vision turned dark. Espurr squirmed, but it did little good. Ker held her tight in her twisted embrace.

"That's it, keep thinking about how you're going to die," Ker cooed in her ear. "Think about how much it hurts and how cold it is. Because it's cold right now, isn't it? You're losing body heat and it's so cold and you're losing more of yourself with every degree your body temperature drops…"

"Mo-Mommy… Daddy…" Espurr sobbed.

"They're never going to hear you; they're in a deep sleep right now. It's just you and me. You and me and Giratina. You see that dark spot growing in your eyes? That's him. He's coming for you, Espurr. Any moment now he'll be here and you'll be gone, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it."

Ker held Espurr tighter as she ran a clawtip along the back of her ear. Espurr could feel a pit opening up inside of her. She could feel it eating away at her insides, feel it taunting her, feel it taking her mind away and replacing it with thoughts she couldn't even understand.

And she could feel the cold, that endless cold. She couldn't even feel Ker or the floor anymore; she could only feel the cold.

Espurr closed her eyes as tears leaked down her face.

It was so cold. So cold. So very, very cold.

Why did it have to be so c-

* * *

Espurr's body suddenly became limp in the Sableye's grasp. The Sableye looked down at the little one. She was most definitely unconscious now, barely breathing. Ker forced one of Espurr's eyes open by dragging her eyelid up with her claws. An unfocused, misty eye greeted her. Ker waved her claw in front of the eye, but the eye remained still in its sockets.

The Sableye grinned as wide as ever once she realized that.

She had done it. She had tricked this stupid kid into thinking she was just some kind Sableye who wanted nothing more than to have a pleasant conversation. She had made Espurr fall into her diabolical trap without her even realizing it until it was too late. She had played her so easily, so masterfully. She had done it all without any problems, whatsoever.

She had finally done it after all this time.

The Sableye unceremoniously dropped Espurr onto the floor with a thud before getting back to her feet. She reached inside of her spectral form and ripped out all of the pecha berries she had supposedly eaten, revealing them to be perfectly intact. Because of course, she couldn't actually eat mortal food. She couldn't even if she wanted to. She couldn't believe that Espurr had actually found comfort at the sight of her eating those things. What a stupid girl.

She dropped the berries onto the ground right beside the Espurr. Then, she screamed a laugh without restraint as she spun around in circles while wildly waving her arms in the air.

Oh how great did this feel! To finally have made someone think that she was a gentle, harmless Sableye, and then turn on them when they least expect it! Even that dread she had just eaten from that gullible little Espurr couldn't have made her feel more alive. Well, as alive as she could ever feel, given what she was.

"I did it, Gallows!" she cried as she finally stopped spinning and looked up at the ceiling. "I finally did it!"

The Chandelure drifted out of the ceiling and settled himself over the table. The Sableye could see his delightfully baleful flames burning far more brightly than they had before he had hid himself away. Perfectly complementing those purple fires were his eyes, glimmering with that amused light that was so contagious and inviting.

Oh what she would give to always see Gallows like this, so pleased with her and nothing else. Like she was the only one that mattered to him in all of the infinities.

"So you did," Gallows remarked with that irresistible, velvety voice. "It only took you about twenty tries, but it seems you've finally grasped the art of appearing harmless and maintaining the illusion for some time."

"Oh right, like it didn't take you at least twenty tries before you became a master," the Sableye scoffed. "I'm sure that you knew right away how to manipulate feelings and perceptions and all that good stuff."

Oh she should have known he wasn't impressed with her, just amused that it had taken her this long. Gallows was a tricky ghost; his emotions were never straight-forward. You thought one thing about him, and then you found out minutes later that everything was the complete opposite of what you thought.

Such a puzzle Gallows was. He was the greatest puzzle there ever was, frustrating everyone who dared to come across him.

But that was exactly what made him so _fun_ …

"Ah Ker, I don't mean it as an insult," Gallows then said with a laugh. "I'm quite happy that you've achieved this! It's true that there are many more milestones you have to reach before you're on my level, but there is substantial progress to be seen with you."

So he was proud of her after all. He had only been teasing her as friends do sometimes. Just the thought of that made Ker smile.

"Besides, we all have to start somewhere, and your first step is to learn to manipulate children," Gallows went on. "Now that you've mastered that craft, we can apply that manipulation tactic with adolescents and adults."

"Right, because kids are gullible and stupid and adults aren't," Ker said with a nod. "Well at least, not as much."

"Precisely. Adults might be more rational but they can be manipulated all the same. All you have to do is produce lies that conform to their beliefs or play with a very basic need they have. There's many other ways to sway someone's thoughts in a direction of your choice, but I'm afraid that's a lesson for another day. All of the processes are a bit much to discuss at the moment."

"It's just weird. It feels so much safer to just destroy mortals' minds with words and make them feel paranoid, especially when I'm not even pretending to be me. But when I'm copying nobody and I'm just trying to lead them down a certain path, I don't feel as invincible. I feel like it'd be so much easier for the mortal to figure out I'm just there to get their fear."

"I think I can understand that. Before, everything was already in place. Everything you needed to collect the dread was just waiting for a catalyst to begin a chain reaction, and you always became that catalyst. However, what I am teaching you is to wear a mask. I'm teaching you not to take advantage of what's already there, but to create the perfect situation to achieve your results."

"Yeah, I think that just about sums it up."

Gallows laughed that devious laugh before he swooped toward Ker. Ker felt a nervous shudder run through her as the Chandelure drew closer. She almost found it amusing how that shiver would go through her without fail every time Gallows wanted to get closer to her. Despite all of the time they spent together, that feeling always struck her without fail, like it was just something she had to deal with now.

But it was alright. It always went away pretty quickly. So when that Chandelure stopped right by her side and wrapped one of his tendrils around her and ran its tip along the odd little horns protruding out of her head, Ker giggled. His touch felt very much like a tickle.

"You'll grow used to it," Gallows assured. "It takes time, but soon enough wearing a mask will be as effortless as changing your voice or appearance. Then when that happens, no one will ever know what is actually you and what isn't. You'll be a true master of the game."

"That would be just great," Ker said dreamily. "How long does that take?"

"It depends. There's much more to learn at this point due to the complexities that intertwine with adulthood. To understand all of these complexities and to learn to twist them in your favor takes quite a bit of time and effort. If I had to guess by mortal standards, I'd say that it might take you… oh, seven years to completely master it all. Perhaps even ten."

"Takes that long to learn how to mess with mortals' heads, huh?"

"Quite. There's so much to learn, dear Ker. You cannot possibly comprehend how much there is to know about the workings of the mind and how it reacts to the outside world. Even I learn something new every time I play my game."

The Chandelure laughed as he tightened his hold around Ker before dragging her close to him. Ker felt a flash of warmth as he held her close to his domed form.

"But none of it compares to when I'm in your presence," Gallows then said with that tantalizing voice that made everything except him disappear from Ker's world. "You're simply so much _fun_ , Ker. We could play together for the rest of the eternity and you would never once ever bore me."

"Hahahah! Yeah right. Quit messing with me."

But even as she said that, she couldn't help but shirk a little. Even after all this time, she still hadn't grown used to his compliments. Nobody had ever really complimented her on anything before, so when Gallows suddenly showed up in her life and seemed impressed with just about everything she did…

Gallows wrapped his other tendril around Ker and pressed her into his being. She could hear his fire crackle as he took in her flustered emotions.

Typical Gallows, trying to get her emotions at a time like this.

"Delicious as always," he purred. "So divine, so succulent, so intoxicating. It makes my flames quiver just savoring it."

"Oh come on, you don't need to say it like _that_ ," Ker groaned. "You sound like a freak when you do."

"But it's true, dear Ker. I wouldn't say it if I was lying. Playing with you and then consuming your emotions is just so… _exciting."_

Yeah, he most certainly did sound like a freak now. Or maybe he was just saying it like that on purpose because she could still feel him sucking out her emotions. She didn't know and she realized she didn't actually care either. Gallows was happy and enjoying himself and that was all that really mattered. It wasn't like what he did hurt her.

Ker only felt the warmth from his ghostly fire flooding into her.

Gallows didn't even seem to care as Ker slumped into him. He only tightened his grip around her and supported her weight against his ghostly form. The flames upon his tendrils licked at her form, but they didn't burn her. They instead left her feeling intoxicatingly dizzy. Ker moaned softly as she pressed her forehead against Gallows.

Yes, this was where she belonged. She always belonged with Gallows, entwined with him more tightly than a knot. Nothing else could ever fill her with the ecstasy that she felt coursing through her now.

But… he was holding back, wasn't he? Ker could feel it; Gallows was too careful, too gentle. He didn't attack her with the ferocity she always saw in those eyes whenever he wanted to feed. He didn't attack her like when a Mightyena leaps upon an Eevee and tears open its throat without hesitation. He was like a little Poochyena in a litter, tackling his siblings down from their sides and harmlessly biting at their legs.

Why did he do that?

Better yet, why did she even care?

" _ **I thought I told you that you can't hurt or kill anyone during your feedings, Ker."**_

Ker's insides turned cold. She swiftly glanced over to her right and saw she was no longer alone with Gallows and their victim. Now a certain Dusknoir hovered in the corner of the room, looking directly at Ker with an insidious glow in his red eye.

Letting Gallows eat her emotions suddenly felt very wrong right now, like they were engaging in some kind of taboo that they weren't even supposed to think about. She could feel heat rise in her cheeks at the very thought that Grim had seen the two of them in such a private, passionate moment, that he had heard her making those _noises_ …

Ker straightened herself back up and wriggled her arms out of his hold before pushing Gallows away from her, prompting a groan of protest out of the Chandelure. How he did that, Ker didn't know. She wasn't even sure how he could talk when he didn't have a mouth. Then again, Ker didn't how she could talk and laugh when she didn't need to breathe…

Gallows removed his tendrils from around her and put a small amount of space between them.

"Ah, don't worry, Grim," Gallows assured with flawless composure, as if the two had been doing nothing more than talking before Grim ever showed up. "This Espurr's heart will not be stopping any time soon. She is merely unconscious, having thought she was dying due to the effect of a placebo. Understand, Ker here had this poor Espurr believe that she was eating poisonous berries when in reality, they were nothing more than harmless pecha berries that couldn't do anything more than cause a stomach ache when overindulging in them."

"Y-Yeah," Ker quickly added in. "It was just an illusion I made up. She'll wake up in a little while, don't worry. See look, she's still breathing."

Grim followed Ker's gaze down to the Espurr. The little child's chest still rose and fell rhythmically. Ker could even hear her heartbeat, thumping softly in her chest, the same kind of beats she would hear from a mortal in the middle of a restful sleep.

" _ **Fine. I'm glad you that didn't kill a mortal, Ker. You know the rules against that."**_

"Yeah, I know," Ker said quietly. "I know. I'm not going to be killing anyone anytime soon, don't you worry."

Grim kept his eyes on the Espurr for a moment longer, and then brought his gaze back over to the two ghosts. Ker felt something crawling through her form as the Dusknoir stared at her. Why was he here? He had never bothered her any other time when she was out of the spectral dimension. It was true that Ker could always _hear_ him in her mind no matter where she went, she heard him every time he wanted her to come to the spectral dimension, but she never saw him. He seemed attached to the spectral dimension, only appearing whenever there as a new ghost to welcome.

Had she done something wrong? Was he here because she had done something she wasn't supposed to? Was it because of Gallows? Did she not teach him something correctly? She was sure that she taught him everything she was supposed to. In fact, she was sure he was better at his job than all the other ghosts in the entire spectral dimension…

Ker looked at Gallows through the corner of her gemstone eyes. He didn't seem particular bothered, only hovering there right beside her, his fire crackling quietly. Of course, he always looked that way. Nothing seemed to bother Gallows. And if something did, Ker would never know, because he was so talented at hiding it.

Part of Ker hated Gallows for that. Part of her wish he wasn't so difficult to read. And yet another part of her was glad. Just seeing him so composed, so unfettered by the situation, made everything seem less frightening. It gave Ker the strength to not give into the paranoid thoughts running rampant through her mind.

" _ **You're needed back at the dimension, Ker."**_

"Huh?" Ker asked, her thoughts still hazing up her mind.

" _ **You need to go back to our dimension. There is business to be dealt with there. Multiple someones want to speak with you."**_

"Oh," Ker said, finally getting everything. "Um, well okay. But why didn't you just tell me that in my head like you always do? You didn't have to come here to tell me that…"

" _ **Because I'm personally going to escort you to where you need to be."**_

Ker honestly didn't know what she wanted to say to that. She knew she was supposed to stay respectful toward Grim, but with all of this baffling information he kept telling her…

"Who wants to talk to me?" Ker decided to ask. "Nobody ever wants to talk to me."

" _ **Pokémon you are familiar with."**_

Now Ker _really_ didn't know what she wanted to say to that. What Pokémon wanted to talk to her? Was it her friends? She hadn't seen them in some time after all. Maybe they wanted to know why she had disappeared for so long. That was the consequence of being with Gallows in so many dimensions, you see. It was very easy to forget how long you had been gone when you dimension-hopped so much and dwelled amongst the inhabitants. Time in the multiverse was never simple; it wanted to be as complicated as possible. Time demanded Ker be thousands of years old in some dimensions and only ten in other dimensions. If Ker actually cared about a single dimension, she would have had to keep up with time's overly complex ways throughout the multiverse, but of course, she didn't. All of the dimensions were her playground. Who cared what happened to just one dimension while she was gone when there were countless others that were just as entertaining?

It was why she gave up trying to understand the mysterious and confusing ways of time a very, _very_ long time ago.

So maybe it was her friends. It made sense. For all she knew, she could have been gone fifty years with Gallows, supposedly teaching him in the ways of the ghost. Of course they never would have guessed it was the other way around and he was teaching her something so much better…

Ohhhh, she knew what she needed to do now. She needed to bring Gallows with her and show him off to her friends. She was going to prove that there were other ghosts just like her and who appreciated her supposedly disturbing thoughts. She was going to show them that she wasn't some freak, some monster.

Yes, that was exactly what she was going to do.

"Alright, I'll come with you," Ker decided. "But, can I take Gallows along with me? Don't want to just leave him here all by himself. I've still got things I need to do with him. You know, stuff to teach and all. I don't want to just leave him all alone with nothing to do while I'm gone."

" _ **I doubt that."**_

"Oh, but she speaks the truth, Grim," Gallows then said with an earnest, almost child-like voice. "At least, she does partly. I do resent being alone. Ker has been instructing me so much that I haven't had the time to become acquainted with anyone else. Ker is my only companion and to strip me of her would be most disastrous. But then again, you should know that, considering that you were the one who turned me into what I am now."

Ker had to resist gawking. She couldn't believe Gallows had the nerve to say that to Grim, especially so effortlessly, like he wasn't even worried that Grim would trap him in his unsettling and ghoulish maw for being so rude. Like this was yet another game of his and he already knew how it was going to end.

Grim's glare darkened just a small amount.

" _ **Sometimes I wonder why I brought you here, Ignis."**_

"Gallows. My name is Gallows," the Chandelure corrected with an insidious chuckle. "As for why, you know why that is as well."

The Dusknoir made no remarks. He watched the two ghosts for a moment longer, and then snapped his fingers. A massive dimensional tear opened up along the wall right beside Grim. The inside of the rip was blurry, like trying to see the bottom of a pond filled with murky, muddy water, but Ker could make out the dead trees that littered the realm.

" _ **Time to go, both of you. We've kept our guests waiting long enough."**_

Ker looked over at Gallows to see that he was looking at her as well with that conceited glimmer in his eyes. Ker couldn't help but laugh a little as soon as she saw it. There was something so endearing about all of that vanity welling up inside him.

"Come along, Ker," Gallows said as he lowered one of his tendrils to the ground. "Let's go see these supposed Pokémon that can't wait to have you in their company."

Ker smiled as she sat down on the tendril nearest to him, as if he were a swing. She felt Gallows settle the end of his tendril around her shoulder, tightly securing her in place as he lifted the appendage right back up. She didn't even need to hold onto him as he swooped toward the tear.

She only sat there and thought about all of the amusing things she was going to say to her baffled friends.

* * *

Glace could still see that demonic Sableye sitting before her, still watching her with those black pools that were its eyes. She didn't know how long it had been sitting there and staring at her like that. In this sunless, utterly lifeless realm, an entire century could have passed and she wouldn't have even known.

She glanced over at her other selves. Yore was settled on the ground and was now preening his feathers, though keeping an occasional eye on the Sableye. Sonata was also sitting down, but she still towered over the two fragments. She had her wings wrapped around her body as though she were hugging herself while her tail kept a loose circle around Glace and Yore. She too kept a cautious eye on their odd company, though not as alertly as Glace. Glace could see her occasionally looking over her shoulder and look at seemingly nothing in particular.

Glace didn't know how much longer she could stand being around that Sableye. While it hadn't moved an inch since it said it was retrieving Ker, Glace still felt her skin crawl every time she saw those bottomless holes in its head. They beckoned her to come closer, telling her that if she would just peer deeper into the endless black, she would gain all the knowledge of the multiverse.

The sounds of bones cracking filled the air. Glace jolted and snapped her gaze over to the Sableye. She could see it still snickering as the white light in its eyes glimmered.

" _ **Ker is here."**_

"She is?" Sonata asked as she straightened herself up. "Where is she? I don't see her anywhere."

" _ **Here, and with her amusing little companion as well. Ketetet. I do hope you don't mind him."**_

Glace and Yore joined Sonata in twisting their heads about, searching for the supposed Sableye. However, no matter where they looked, all they saw were trees. Glace wondered if anything lived in those trees, or was perhaps hiding behind them right now. Nothing had happened when that demonic Sableye had been disappearing behind their black trunks, but Glace knew not to take comfort in that thought. Anything that could possibly be living in this dimension probably obeyed that demonic Sableye without question. They could be staying hidden on its command and were waiting for a signal to come out and bombard Glace and the others.

"Hey, where exactly is Ke-"

Glace stopped as soon as she brought her gaze back to where the Sableye sat. It was no longer amongst the three. It had disappeared without a trace, just as it had done repeatedly during their conversations with it. Glace shot to her feet as her heart raced, prompting Yore and Sonata to do the same.

A portal opened up right where the Sableye once was. The three fragments backed away as two Pokémon flew out of the portal and entered the dreary forest. However, they didn't seem to notice Glace and the others, as they had their sides to the fragments.

Glace recognized one of the Pokémon to be a Chandelure. He was easy to identify, given that she didn't know any other Pokémon that had such odd bodies seemingly made out of glass. She only had to meet one in her entire life to forever remember what a Chandelure looked like.

The Pokémon hovering right beside that Chandelure though, Glace didn't know the name of. It was a large, bulky ghost with a massive mouth on its stomach, along with a single, glowing red eye. When Glace looked at that ghost, no names rang in her mind. Only a shudder went down her spine as soon as she saw the hulking ghost, followed by a single, perpetuating thought that she needed to run very far away.

Something about that particular ghost seemed unsettlingly familiar. Something about the way its eye gazed upon the world with a cold indifference, as if everything were a meaningless speck it could destroy with a single thought.

The monstrous ghost suddenly turned its head and locked its gaze onto Glace, paralyzing her on the spot.

" _ **There they are."**_

The Chandelure turned his whole body toward Glace and the others. When he did that, Glace saw that there actually wasn't just two new Pokémon in her company; there was actually one more sitting on that Chandelure's arm.

It was a Sableye, grinning to herself for seemingly no reason at all.

That was Ker. That was Ker, the fragment of this dimension. The moment Glace gazed into those gemstones, she knew that. From the way her companion's eyes also seemed to light up as soon as they saw the Sableye, Glace imagined they had the same epiphany.

The Sableye's smile faded as she leapt off the Chandelure and quietly landed on the ground. She eyed the three with an odd stare that Glace couldn't read. Her lack of actual eyes made it rather difficult to tell what sort of emotions the fragment was feeling.

"Who are these guys?" the Sableye asked as she pointed a finger at the three fragments.

" _ **Pokémon who wanted to talk to you. They will explain themselves soon enough, rest assured."**_

The behemoth ghost then looked away from Glace and the others and gazed down at his two ghostly companions.

" _ **I leave them with you now. My work here is done."**_

Then, the ghost snapped his fingers, and he was gone, just like that. Just like how that otherworldly creature from before would disappear into thin air. However, the Sableye or Chandelure didn't seem very surprised by this. They only looked at each other for a moment before bringing their gazes back to the group.

"Alright, who are you guys?" the Sableye asked as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Better yet, how did you even get here?"

"What do you mean?" Glace asked cautiously.

"Oh, don't play stupid with me," Ker said with a scoff. "You guys are mortals. The air around you tastes like mortal emotions."

"Oh can't disagree with her there," the Chandelure added in with a laugh.

The Chandelure left Ker's side and swooped right to the three fragments. He stopped right next to Yore as he wrapped one of his tendrils around his neck. Glace could feel Yore squirming uncomfortably at his touch.

"You three are so lovely," the Chandelure mused with an uncomfortably alluring voice. "Especially you, Tranquil. The way you writhe but remain too paralyzed to fly away is quite adorable. I want to frame your face forever in my memory."

Yore had no reaction to that statement. He only stared up at the Chandelure with a frozen, petrified expression, perhaps thinking that by being still as possible, he would become invisible.

A long scowl broke out on Ker's face.

"Oh come on, Gallows! You just ate!" she cried, whining like a child. "How can you possibly still be hungry?"

"Nonsense," Gallows said nonchalantly. "There's never enough dread to eat. Besides, these three are irresistible. Their dread calls to me like a siren song. In fact…"

He released his grip on Yore and wound it around Glace's arm. Glace wanted to lash out at him and strike him with her claws, but his very touch froze her on the spot. She could only sit there helplessly and watch the fire inside of his domed body sway and crackle like a bonfire. She thought she could feel something leaving her body as she watched those flames, but she couldn't tell what. She only knew that it felt like she was being forced to exhale all of the air out of her lungs.

After what felt like an eternity passed, Gallows released his grip on Glace, allowing her to finally breathe. Sonata shirked away from the Chandelure, undoubtedly thinking he would come after her next, but he didn't. The Chandelure only drifted back over to the sulking Ker and wrapped one of his arms around her shoulder and dragged her close to him.

"Ah, but alas, their emotions fail to please me," he then said in a disappointed tone. "Theirs lacks any true flavor. It's filling, but it lacks the richness that remains with me long after I've devoured your emotions. How pitiful. It seems yours is still the most delightful there is. There seems to be no replacement for you."

Ker didn't say anything or even look at the Chandelure, but she did smile a little. The two ghosts remained there, leaning into one another and perfectly content to be amongst themselves, completely ignoring everything around them. Glace was sure they had forgotten all about her, Sonata, and Yore.

Ker's eyes flashed, and then she looked back at Glace. The glower returned as soon she saw the Weavile. Glace felt her insides crawl when she saw that scowl. She honestly wished Gallows would go back to tormenting her and the others rather than have Ker look at her like that.

"Oh right, you mortals," Ker said with acid in her voice. "Seriously, how did you get here?"

"Someone brought us here," Glace answered, forcing herself to sound more calm than she actually felt. "We were looking for you and then someone brought us here. They said that you were here."

"Right," Ker said with a scoff. "Like I'd believe that."

The Sableye eyed the three fragments for a moment, perhaps reading their souls with her disturbing ghostly powers.

"Who brought you here?" she then asked.

"This thing," Glace answered. "I don't really know what it was, but it could change into different beings. Like one was this Sableye without eyes and another was this giant monster without a face."

"Well that narrows it down to about a billion entities I know that are shapeshifters," Ker stated blandly. "It didn't have a name or anything?"

"It had a name. But, I can't pronounce it," Glace then said before she looked over at her companions. "Do you guys know how to say the name?"

"Knee-Are-Let… Knee-Are-Lay…" Sonata tried as her tongue struggled to produce the alien sounds. "Knee-Are-Leth-Oh… bleh, I can't say it. Was a really weird name."

"So some being with this name you can't pronounce brought you here because you were looking for me," Ker said, not even bothering to hide the skepticism in her voice. "What, you don't want to be anymore vague?"

"Well actually, it had a bunch of names!" Sonata added quickly. "That unpronounceable name was just one of them. Like it said it was also Giratina. I'm sure you know those him since you're a Sableye."

"Giratina, that giant shadow dragon that lives in a separate dimension from a bunch of Pokémon dimensions. That Giratina," Ker stated, still unimpressed.

"Yeah, him! I know it's hard to believe, but that's what he said he is. He said he's Giratina and a bunch of other things too."

Ker's scowl only deepened.

"You guys must be stupid if you want to make me think that Giratina brought you here," Ker said lowly. "I know about ten Giratina and not a single one has access to this place. Only Reapers and other ghosts like me can get here, and he sure isn't one of them. He's just some oversized worm that watches everything you Pokémon do. Or I guess is the guardian of some spirit world. Or plotting to take over the dimension he's watching. Depends on where you go."

"T-Ten Giratina?" Sonata asked frailly. "There's not just one in the whole multiverse?"

"Oh, so you're aware of the multiverse. You're even dumber than I thought if you know that but still think there's just one Giratina," Ker retorted. "I don't know if I should pity you or laugh at you."

Sonata opened her mouth, perhaps to say more, but the words never came. She only stood there, completely at loss. Glace couldn't blame her for her reaction; she also had a hard time understanding what Ker meant. There couldn't be more than one Giratina. While it was true that there were many different universes, she was sure that a deity as mighty as Giratina could travel to all of the dimensions with ease. There was no reason it could be restricted to merely one.

Because that was what that demonic Sableye was, wasn't it? It was Giratina. So how could there be so many Giratina when there was only one of that demon? Why would there be a single Giratina for each dimension?

"I do suppose one can't blame her for thinking that," Gallows suggested in a mocking tone. "After all, mortals can be aware of quite a number of things, but they can never actually see the full picture. It would destroy their fragile little minds."

"Oh, of course," Ker said with a snicker. "When they start to realize how pointless their life is in the grand scheme of everything, they go completely insane."

"Quite."

"What a waste of time this is. And here I was hoping these three would be my friends. Ohh, it would have been great to show you off to them, Gallows. Would have loved the looks on their faces when they saw I found someone like you. Someone who's the greatest at scaring mortals and thinks just the way I do."

"Oh, you don't know where they are?"

"Nope. They could be anywhere. But knowing them, they're probably at that dimension where all of those ghost Pokémon look-alikes fly around at night. It's such an easy dimension to get food from. You just pretend to be one of those ghosts, pop up next to some unsuspecting Pokémon, and then _BOO_! Instant food."

"That sounds terribly boring."

"I know, right? Such a boring, lazy way to get food. But hey, maybe we can visit that dimension sometime. I heard some things are happening there right now that would be really fun to watch. Not to eat or anything, but you know, just to watch."

"Hmmm, maybe. I did want to continue teaching you the game though. You've made so much progress and it would be a shame to suddenly halt it."

"Yeah, but we've gotta just have fun sometimes! I mean, I always have fun learning things from you and just being around you and everything… but you know, it's fun to just explore sometimes. See what kind of stuff is going down throughout the multiverse."

"True. I did enjoy that dimension you brought me to after you showed interest in learning how to play the game. Such unsettling creatures lived in that dimension, defying all logical understanding with their shapeless bodies and countless eyes. Was quite a sight after living in such a dull, monotonous dimension that offered me no sense of wonder."

"Yeah, exactly! So why don't we just…"

The two ghosts continued like this, rambling on and on without ever once glancing over at Glace, Yore, and Sonata. They only talked amongst themselves, completely absorbed with each other as if not a single thing in the world mattered except the other.

Glace honestly didn't know what to think of the situation. She didn't know what she expected about Ker, especially after Sonata had such an uncanny way of describing her. Maybe she anticipated a near identical copy of that Sableye she had been talking to earlier. However, she never would have suspected this uncanny, peculiar Chandelure to be in any part of her journey.

Even though he seemed quite friendly as he conversed with Ker, something about him didn't seem right. There was a particular aura about him that made Glace wary of everything, including her own thoughts. So why did Ker seem so attracted to him? Why did she only focus on him and nothing else?

Glace knew she needed to break the two of them apart. She needed Ker to come with her, or be assimilated. So long as that Chandelure was still there, Ker wouldn't even consider listening. But how could she get that Chandelure to leave? He seemed just as equally attached to Ker, maybe even more so with how snug his grip around her was.

"We need to talk to Ker alone, Gallows."

The two ghosts stopped talking. They both brought their bemused gazes to Yore, who was now standing and casting them a resolute glare.

"There's something we need to discuss with Ker," Yore went on, his voice as unwavering as his stance. "Would you kindly leave us alone for a while?"

Gallows hovered there, speechless and with a glazed over expression. However, it was only momentary, for his fire flared and the glow in his eyes grew brighter.

"Oh, being too distracting for you, am I?" Gallows asked rhetorically. "Do I keep driving Ker's attention away from the three of you? I suppose I do when I truly think about it. However, you can't fault me when you three are dreadfully boring with equally boring taste. It's no wonder Ker finds far more fascination in my jabber than in your presence."

"Call us boring if you want, but we do need to talk to her," Yore said again. "It's about an important matter."

"As all the mortals say about subjects that are always trivial in the end," Gallows quipped. "But very well. I'll depart from your banal company and allow you the attention you want with dear Ker."

"Aw, what? Gallows, you don't have to listen to them!" Ker whined.

"Oh, but I do," Gallows said as he unwound his tendril from around her. "They clearly want your undivided attention regarding something petty, I'm sure, and they won't leave you be until they get what they want. But don't worry; you and I will be reunited soon. I'll be waiting for you at our rendezvous point. I presume you remember the dimension and the location within?"

"Of course! I'm the one who made it up after all."

"Excellent. Well then, until I see you again. I do hope that these mortals don't cause you too much pain."

Ker cast him a longing gaze, but didn't make any attempt at forcing him to stay. The Chandelure glanced over at the three and gave them a nasty, mocking glare. He didn't even need to say anything for Glace to hear exactly what he wanted to say in her mind.

" _Don't feel happy about any of this."_

It sent shivers down Glace's spine.

Gallows kept his unsettling gaze on the three for a moment longer, and then swooped away into the distance. All of the fragments watched him swiftly disappear from sight, becoming little more than a purple wisp in no time.

When even that faded into the darkness of the dimension, Ker finally turned back to the group. Glace could see her gemstones flickering dangerously. It reminded her too much of the way Gallows's flames had blazed earlier.

"I can't believe you made Gallows leave," she said bitterly. "Bet you feel so accomplished right now, don't you?"

"We do need to talk to you, Ker," Glace said. "And Yore wasn't lying when he said that it was about something important."

"Uh huh, right," Ker said with a scoff. "Didn't mean you had to make Gallows leave."

"Well we kind of did because you kept getting distracted by him," Sonata said pointedly. "Plus it's probably just better not having him around. He's kind of a creep…"

"Yeah whatever," Ker said with a dismissive wave of her claw. "Just tell me what you wanted to tell me so I can go be with Gallows again."

Glace was about to talk, but then realized she didn't actually know what to say. She knew that hypothetically she could convince Ker that she knew them and use that as a way to make the Sableye come with them. However, Glace now saw that wouldn't work. Ker didn't have a reason to believe she knew the three of them. In fact, she didn't even seem open to persuasion; she seemed actively hostile to them. Glace honestly didn't know how she wanted to react to that. None of the other fragments had ever been this way, besides Glace herself.

Glace briefly wondered if this conversation with Ker would end the same way it did for Sonata, with Ker clawing out the Weavile's eye.

"Ker, we wanted to something that might be a bit difficult to believe," Yore suddenly said. "You probably won't want to believe us, but it is the truth."

"Uh Yore? Are you sure you want to just tell her everything right away?" Sonata quickly cut in. "Remember what happened when we told you everything right away?"

"I don't quite see-"

"Hey Noivern, you shut up for a bit," Ker hissed before looking back over at Yore. "Don't let her stop you. I've seen a lot unbelievable things you mortals would never even dream about, so just try and see if you can surprise me. So go ahead, say whatever you've got on your mind."

Glace could feel Sonata squirm nervously, but she didn't argue with Ker. She only kept the quiet as she wrapped her wings tightly around her body.

Yore ruffled his feathers before he stood taller. Despite his stronger stature, Ker didn't seem fazed. She only kept her bland, almost bored gaze on the Tranquill.

"If you had been a mortal, I would have hidden this information from you until I had felt you were ready. Mainly, when I had gained your trust," Yore began. "However, considering your position in life, I realize that there is no reason you would ever trust me. You seem above mortality, and while I don't quite understand the full implications of that, I understand it means you can never fully connect with me. You and I exist on very different planes of existence, in a sense. You want nothing to do with me or the ones with me."

"Got that right," Ker said in a dry tone.

"There is a great danger lurking across the multiverse," Yore continued on, unaffected by Ker's remark. "As we speak, something is destroying the barriers between all of the dimensions. It will only be a matter of time before they all collapse on each other and wipe out everyone. The only one that can stop that from happening is a great guardian of all the dimensions called Keeper of Realms. However, in order for it save the dimensions, it has to come to them in pieces as multiple Pokémon. Understand, it's normally locked outside of all of the dimensions, residing in a place outside of reality, making it impossible to interact with reality. So, its plan is to have all of the Pokémon be brought together, and then through them, it will bring itself back together in reality. By doing so, it will finally gain access to the tear rending apart reality and prevent the annihilation of reality.

"We are the pieces of that guardian, and so are you, Ker."

Yore released a great sigh once he finished and slouched his posture. Glace watched with him and Sonata as Ker kept her impassive stare fixed on them. Glace searched for any semblance of surprise, a mere glimmer of emotion, but there was nothing to be seen.

"I get it now; you guys aren't stupid at all," Ker finally said after a few seconds.

"Well we-"

"You're just _hopeless_."

The three stiffened as the Sableye shake her head as a vicious scowl broke out on her face. Glace could see her teeth glimmering in the light of her gemstones.

"I've seen a lot of mortals believe in things that make absolutely no sense, but I don't think any of their beliefs have ever topped the gibberish you guys are spouting," Ker spat. "You know about the multiverse, but you call it limited and containable! What, do you think there's only two dimensions or something?"

"Well there's probably a lot more than that, but there's a set number, isn't there?" Sonata asked. "I mean, nothing exists in infinites…"

"Hahahah! Yeah, there it is. There's that thought that tries to make sense of everything so you can control it," Ker sneered. "Well let me tell you something; there is no end to the multiverse. It just exists, growing bigger all the time. It stretches on into the infinities and it never stops. You can't _destroy_ the entire multiverse. You can destroy quite a number of the dimensions, but you can't destroy every single one. That's like trying to count every single grain of sand on a beach."

"But… Keeper of Realms… he said that the multiverse was going to be destroyed!" Sonata insisted frantically. "He said that everyone was going to die! He made us so that we could stop all of that from happening!"

"Well maybe you're just crazy then, or that supposed keeper is just messing with you," Ker stated. "Whatever it is, you're wrong either way. You can't destroy the multiverse. Hah. Can't believe that Grim was acting like you three had something important to say."

The Sableye took one of her claws and lashed out at the air. Her claws ripped through an invisible dimensional barrier and tore open a dimensional rift. What was inside of that rift, Glace couldn't tell. She only knew that it had a large amount of bright, flashing colors that nearly blinded her.

"Ker, wait!" Sonata cried. "C'mon, we need you to believe us! I mean, you have to at least think we look familiar! Don't you feel like you've seen us somewhere before?"

The Sableye scowled as she studied the three with her scrutinizing gaze.

"Yeah, you guys look familiar. I'll admit that," Ker said.

"Then doesn't that mean something?" Sonata asked hopefully. "Doesn't that mean that at least part of what we said has merit and that maybe we're telling the truth?"

Ker scowled even deeper as she lowered her claw to her side.

"I've been to at least five billion dimensions in the time I've existed, and that's just something I'm saying to conform to your limited perspective," she said flatly. "Some of them don't even exist anymore. Just one day, went to go visit this dimension I liked, and then it wasn't there anymore. You want to guess how many Pokémon I've met in all those dimensions? You want to guess how many Weavile, Tranquill, and Noivern I've seen that look exactly like you guys?"

Sonata didn't say anything. She could only shoot Ker a desperate gaze, her mind spinning with possibilities, but finding nothing to offer her aide. The Sableye scoffed as she faced the dimensional rift again.

"Ker, wait a moment," Yore said this time, though with more calm in his voice than Sonata.

The Sableye groaned as she brought her agitated gaze back over to the group. Glace could see those gemstones flickering dangerously now, like she'd rip open all of their throats if they dared to push her any more. Glace saw Yore take a step back as soon as those jewels locked onto him, but he didn't remove his gaze from Ker.

"I think there's another reason you might not be willing to leave," Yore said, though more feebly than Glace imagined he wanted to sound. "You might be accusing us of being untruthful, but with the way you act around that Chandelure… I suspect other reasons you refuse to leave."

It that moment, Ker's frown twisted into an uncomfortable grimace and her stance weakened.

Ker forced a glare onto her face, just barely masking her awkwardness.

"Gallows has nothing to do with this," Ker stated firmly. "He's just someone I happen to enjoy hanging out with. Your insane idea that the entire multiverse is falling apart is what makes me not want to go. That whole idea makes absolutely no sense."

"See, I have a question about that," Yore then said. "Is he really only someone you enjoy being around, or is he your mate?"

Ker's grim expression grew. Glace even thought she saw the Sableye's cheeks turning a faint shade of red.

"S-Stop trying to label us like that," Ker tried to hiss menacingly, but failing. "I hate it when you mortals try to do that. You see two whatevers being close together, and you just have to say that they're mates, or boyfriend and girlfriend, or a couple, or in love, or that they're in a relationship, or that they're partners, or whatever you mortals say. Have to feel like you need to understand it even though it's none of your business."

"But does he mean enough to you that he's the real reason you don't want to come with us?" Yore asked.

Ker finally snapped. A harsh, guttural growl escaped the back of her throat as her horns elongated and sharpened.

"The answer is that it doesn't matter," Ker snarled. "Maybe I don't want to leave him. Maybe I don't want to throw my life away when I'm perfectly happy with how things are now. Maybe I think you guys are insane and don't understand _anything_. Maybe it's all of those things! But it all leads to the same thing in the end: _**I'm not going with you**_."

And then, without any hesitation, Ker leapt into the dimensional tear.

"No, Ker!" Sonata screamed.

The Noivern scrambled after the Sableye, but it was too late. The portal closed itself up just as Ker disappeared into it, leaving the three all alone in the insidious dimension. Sonata stood in front of where the rift had once been and stared into it, as if thinking that Ker might suddenly come back. Glace and Yore didn't bother saying anything to her. They only sat back down with long frowns and heavy hearts.

After a long minute of silence, Ker still hadn't returned. Sonata released a deep sigh and hung her head. She sluggishly made her way over to Glace and Yore, her wings hanging limply at her sides.

"This is disappointing," Glace said glumly.

"That's a big understatement," Sonata remarked, equally as gloomy as she settled herself beside the others on the ground. "But I mean… why was she saying all of that? She says that there's an infinite amount of dimensions, but can there really be? I just can't imagine there being a literally endless amount."

"Keeper of Realms specifically told you two and Jera that all of the dimensions would collapse, didn't it?" Yore wondered. "That's not something all of you imagined?"

"It told me specifically I had to stop all this destruction from happening," Sonata stated. "Had this vision and then it talked to me directly."

"I had a vision that showed many places falling to ruin until all of us gathered together," Glace added. "Then from how Jera described her experience, a voice talked to her when she was out and about. It told her she wasn't really an Octillery and that I wasn't a Weavile and so on."

"I see. So only Ker and I have not had any conversations with Keeper of Realms, if her reaction is any proof of that," Yore said with a nod.

"Maybe she's just saying all of that because she doesn't want to leave," Sonata offered. "I mean, she was spouting a lot of nonsense, like how there's ten Giratina. She could have just been doing it to confuse us."

"Maybe," Glace replied. "However, you have to admit that when she talked about it, she seemed as though she believed every word she spoke. Even that Chandelure seemed to believe everything she said."

"Well even if everything she said was true, it doesn't really change the fact that those rifts exist and they are causing problems," Sonata then said. "You heard about what happened in Jera's dimension; she wouldn't lie about that. And then there was that fire in my dimension…"

"I can hardly think of a reason that a rift would open up in the sky and have it not be an omen for disaster," Yore said with a flick of his tail. "So, you are probably right in that regard. It still perplexes me, however, that Ker so adamantly believes there are immeasurable amounts of dimensions. I wonder if she is correct, given what she is, and if our old self can actually solve the problem."

"Well that thing we talked to, uhhh, Giratina, he said that our old self was basically Palkia and Dialga," Sonata said. "The myths of my dimension say they can do all kinds of crazy things. So maybe they really can fix a whole multiverse if it's as big as Ker says it is."

"I hope so," Yore stated. "I only wonder-"

" _ **I see you Yog-Sothoth spawn were unable to convince Ker to go with you."**_

The three looked over to their side and found the eye-less Sableye in their company once again. It sat down in a cross-legged position, watching them with a sort of stare Glace couldn't read. It seemed to be disappointed, but at the same time, very amused.

"Oh, you're here again," Sonata said uneasily, scooting away from the Sableye.

" _ **I'm always here. I see everything in this realm of mine."**_

"Well… okay then. So um… you know we failed."

" _ **Yes, I know. I know Ker fled to another dimension."**_

"We don't know where she went," Glace then said, trying to ignore the twisting of her innards. "I couldn't see the dimension she disappeared into. Do you think you could bring her back, or at least tell us where she is?"

The Sableye snickered that awful sound. Glace felt a shudder go down her spine as the white within those empty eyes grew. Now there was more light than dark in those bottomless holes.

" _ **Oh, I can do much better than that, Yog-Sothoth spawn. I convince dear Ker understand the situation and assist you three."**_

Glace shot the Sableye a disbelieving look, but its sinisterly smug expression didn't break. It only widened its smile and tilted its head to the side like how some hatchlings might. However, unlike when those hatchlings did that, this Sableye didn't look the least bit endearing. It only brought out how unnatural it was, because not a single part of its body, not even the neck, twisted to accommodate for the change. Only the head moved, as though it was disconnected from the rest of the body all together.

" _ **I promise, I'll be able to change her mind. No one knows Ker better than I do. You three can continue searching for the others without ever having to worry about her."**_

"You would do that for us?" Sonata asked carefully, though Glace could still hear the enthusiasm in her voice.

" _ **Of course. I promised Yog-Sothoth I would help with its plan. Ker is a part of that plan."**_

"Well, thank you then!" Sonata said, a gleeful smile breaking out on her face. "That would help us out a lot! You just made me feel a lot better about this whole thing."

" _ **Ketetetet. I know. I know, Noivern spawn."**_

The Sableye brought its head back to its normal position and seemed to smile to itself.

Glace couldn't help but stare at that uncanny Sableye. She too felt her heart soaring at the thought that this entity would be helping them get Ker. After everything that had happened, she was sure they would never be able to get Ker. But now they had help, and not just from a mortal, but from a powerful, shape-shifting deity. It would undoubtedly be able to find Ker again.

But even with all of these hopeful thoughts circling around in her mind, part of her couldn't help but feel something wasn't right. Something about the way that Sableye watched them with its otherworldly eyes that were filled with an alien sort of glee that Glace couldn't comprehend.

" _ **It's time for you three to depart. May all the luck in all the universes be with you as you set out to find the other spawn."**_

There was movement from the ruptured tentacle from before, still remaining close to the four. The fragments snapped their gazes at the tentacle just in time to see it suddenly lurch at them. They didn't have any time to react as it wrapped its slimy body around the three of them. The three thrashed and squirmed, but the tentacle's hold wouldn't relent.

" _ **Don't fret, Yog-Sothoth spawn. This is the only way to put you all back together."**_

Just then, a smaller, thinner tendril emerged from the gaping hole in the large tentacle and tied itself around one of Sonata's circular ears. She didn't even get to scream as it pulled her into the hole, wiping her off the face of the dimension.

" _ **This will soon all only be but an unpleasant memory you could never comprehend."**_

Another tendril slithered out of the hole and wrapped around Yore's neck. It too yanked him into the hole as soon as it had a secure grip around him. And just like Sonata, he too disappeared without a trace, without a sound.

" _ **Very soon, you'll be in the comfortable lie of a mortal reality."**_

Glace whimpered something, but she didn't know what. She couldn't even move as that tendril returned one last time and circled around her arm. Then, with an effortless pull, it dragged her into the massive, black hole.

" _ **And you'll wake up, your narrative as flimsy and as skewed as it always has been and always will be."**_

There was warmth and wetness all around Glace, and then, there was nothing.


	12. Your New Narrative

Glace inhaled sharply as her eyes snapped open.

Fuzzy pink and green colors flooded into her vision. Glace blinked once, and the colors morphed into blades of grass and flowers with welcoming petals that seemed to want to embrace her.

Flowers and grass. No, that wasn't right. There weren't any of those things in that Sableye's dimension. Nothing beautiful existed in that twisted, monstrous realm.

The ground wasn't right either. It didn't seem to wriggle under her fur. It now only seemed cool and comforting, if a bit ticklish around her stomach. Glace carefully rolled herself onto her back with a groan. No pain washed over her as a familiar blue sky filled her vision. There was only the sensation of air filling her lungs and the slight relief of it all escaping out of her nose.

Glace watched a pair of Pidove fly through the air so high above. She could see them flapping their lithe little wings as they pierced the sky. Except, they couldn't actually pierce the sky, could they? The sky was limitless, endless. At least, it was to mortals like them. Glace knew there was a limit to that sky, a place where it stopped being a sky and it became the black nothingness that was outer space.

 _ **It's amusing how you wonder about the sky when you are incapable of flight. Even in a hundred eons from now, this statement will still ring true.**_

 _ **Your fruitless curiosity is endlessly endearing.**_

As the cruel and haunting laughter subsided back into the silence of her mind, Glace sat herself up and glimpsed at her surroundings. She found herself surrounded by hundreds of colorful blossoms amidst and endless, grassy field, every which way she looked. Something tall stood upon the horizon – A mountain, or perhaps a city? It was impossible to tell. But out here, there was nobody. Only her, alone, amidst this endless, serene meadow..

Glace sighed deeply as she held her head in her claws.

She hoped she had imagined that voice. While that unsettling Sableye had proved to be quite helpful, she didn't think she could handle it being with her again. Its patronizing, taunting ways ripped away at her sense of what was real and what wasn't.

And its name… that name that her tongue couldn't speak aloud… there was something unnatural about that name. Every time she thought of its true name, that incomprehensible name spoken in that alien language, something within her quivered.

 _Yeah, I know, he's creepy. You're not the only one who thinks that._

It took Glace a moment to recognize the new voice that rang with such contagious vigor. It effectively drowned out the maddening laughter.

 _I really don't know if we can trust that Sableye, Sonata._

 _Oh, what makes you say that?_

 _Because it's just so obvious that it's evil. What kind of benevolent entity turns into horrifying things and demeans us for our supposedly skewed narratives, whatever that means?_

 _Well… okay, not going to lie; I do feel a little anxious about Giratina. I mean, he looks like he wants to help us and it'd be awesome to have his help, but just the fact that he's so blatantly creepy…_

 _It also said something about it being the darkness in mortal's minds, which doesn't help matters._

 _Yeah… but I mean, is it really such a bad idea to trust him, just a little? I mean, he didn't hurt us and he even brought us Ker, just like he promised he would._

 _That could have been something it did to put us at ease. Sometimes during hunts, one of my clanmates would use a similar tactic. When prey proved to be too strong, she would sometimes collapse on the ground after one hit and pretend to be dead. Then, when the prey had its attention elsewhere, she'd get up and strike its weakest point._

 _Okay, that's true. Like I said, I don't exactly disagree with you about this whole thing. I can't get myself to completely trust Giratina either because he's just… you know. I mean, in my dimension, Giratina is supposedly very nice, but its appearance is what I bet I'd see if some really mad Darkrai put me under._

 _Exactly._

 _But wait. Even though this whole thing seems a bit iffy, let's try not worrying about this too much._

 _No way. We are not doing that._

 _Look Glace, hear me out. We're away from Giratina now, so we don't have to worry about him until he brings Ker back to us. Let's just wait and see what happens, and maybe come up with a backup plan just in case. But we have other things to worry about right now._

Glace really did want to think that Giratina only had their best interests in mind. After all, had it broken even one promise to her? It had not. Perhaps there was hope. Perhaps it could be trusted.

But those eyes, those all-consuming black holes that seemed to _hunger_ for her…

If it was trustworthy, then why did it strike such perfect fear into every thread of her soul?

 _ **Are you really sure that's what you saw, or have you deluded yourself into thinking that to justify your paranoia towards me?**_

Glace put her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't hear the laugh this time, but it hardly made anything better. The silence only punctuated those jeering words.

 _It's just your imagination, Glace. It's not real… it's not real…_

 _Something wrong, Glace?_

The pervasive words went away again as another familiar voice rang clear in her mind. This voice seemed perpetually composed yet agreeable, no matter the circumstances.

 _You can't hear "Giratina" thoughts in my head? You can't hear it taunting me?_

 _I'm afraid I don't._

 _Yeah, me neither._

No, that couldn't be right. They had to be able to hear those thoughts. They were her now, after all. They could hear all of her other thoughts, including the million frantic worries racing through her mind right now. How could they not hear these paranoid echoes of Giratina's voice?

 _ **Because I don't want them to hear me. Only you can hear me.**_

Glace's heart stopped. She could feel something sinister inside of her now and watching her from the darkest corner of her mind. Unlike Yore's and Sonata's presences, this one didn't seem confined to just one area of her mind. She felt it had the power, if it wanted, to devour her whole mind.

 _No. No… no… you're… you're not…_

 _ **Yes, I'm the one you call Giratina. I anticipated you would call me by that name.**_

 _How are you talking to me?_

 _ **Because I'm inside of you, Glace. When I put you and the others back together, I realized I actually couldn't leave you alone. So, I added a piece of myself to the amalgamation that is you.**_

 _Why would you do that?_

 _ **Oh Glace, you don't need me to answer that question for you. You already know the answer.**_

 _What are you talking about?_

 _ **Because you won't make it on your own, not even with all of these Yog-Sothoth spawn you've collected. You need someone with intimate knowledge of how the multiverse works. You need me. Without me, your plan will fail.**_

Glace didn't know how to respond to any of that. She couldn't even begin to understand what was unfolding before her. All of this seemed too surreal.

 _ **Ah, I knew you would doubt me. Hmm, fine. I will allow the other Yog-Sothoth spawn to hear me, if that will provide you comfort.**_

Glace felt an odd popping sensation in her mind. It felt very similar to what happened to her ears when she climbed up a mountain.

 _Are you alright, Glace? You're beginning to worry me._

 _ **Everything is quite fine, Yore. Now that I'm here, there will never be anything to fear.**_

This time it was Yore and Sonata who panicked. Glace could feel their fear thumping in her heart and shuddering across her skin. Glace could barely keep an impassive scowl on her face as their panic escalated.

 _Oh Arceus… you're here! You're actually here!_

 _ **Yes, I am here amongst you three once more.**_

 _Look, if you heard anything I was just saying to Glace, I didn't mean it, okay? I really do trust you! It was just that-_

 _ **Settle down, Sonata. I have no intentions of hurting any of you. I'm instead here to offer my aid.**_

 _Huh?_

Glace heard Giratina laugh again, but this time, it didn't send a chill down her spine. It still had an unsettling ring to it, but somehow, it soothed her.

 _ **Despite all the information you've been able to gather regarding the multiverse, it is still mortal knowledge. You gaze at the multiverse with your murky mortal eyes. You are blind to how the multiverse truly works and how it perceives your tiny presence.**_

 _ **In other words, you know absolutely nothing. Your limited knowledge impairs your search for the other spawn, making it so that only four of you have found each other.**_

 _So… you put yourself in Glace because you want to help us find the others?_

 _ **Yes. Your current attempts have proven to be inadequate. You are obviously in need of assistance.**_

 _Well that would be nice… but uhhhh, aren't you supposed to be getting Ker? You said you were and now you're here and I don't get how you could be doing both at the same time…_

 _ **Did what happened in my realm not offer you a glimpse of what I am capable of? I am not like any of you; I can find Ker and assist you three at the same time. I am not bound to the limitations of mortals.**_

 _Okay, well I guess that's true…_

 _Giratina, I do appreciate the offer you're giving us. I honestly do. However… I must admit that I'm wary of your presence here._

 _ **Ketetet. Are you afraid of me?**_

Yore refused to answer. Glace felt Giratina leave the dark corner of her mind and wrap tightly around what she felt was the Tranquill's presence. But even then, it didn't feel threatening and imposing.

 _ **I will open your eyes to the eldritch unknowns of all realities. I will offer you glimpses of forbidden knowledge many mortals would murder to obtain. I will provide you access to arcane powers you could never hope to fathom. I will see that no harm is brought to you during your mission. You will be whole once more. Nothing will ever stop you from becoming your whole self, so long as I am with you.**_

… _And why do you want to help us?_

 _ **Oh, but you already know. You already know it is for Yog-Sothoth. There is no other reason, besides of course to prevent the annihilation of all realities. You don't honestly believe I want all of the multiverse to perish, do you? What is there to gain from absolute nothingness?**_

… _Alright. Your presence still unnerves me, but I will trust you for now._

 _Yeah, same here. You've helped us before even though you're… well… the creepiest thing I've ever met._

 _ **Good. And what about you, Glace? Do you accept my help?**_

The very thought that a part of that demonic Sableye was living in her mind made Glace's skin crawl. She couldn't imagine how she would stay sane if she had to hear another word from that entity. She still didn't completely trust it. She knew Giratina would stay inside of her even if she declined. Her actions didn't matter to Giratina; she could do nothing to expel the being from her body.

 _ **If you tell me to leave, I will leave. I realize that I cannot earn your trust without a gesture of good faith, so it shall be that you keep me around voluntarily.**_

 _You're not going to leave me alone._

 _ **Oh, but I would, Glace. If it would earn your trust, I will gladly leave if you tell me to. You will never hear from me again until I find Ker and deliver her to you.**_

Glace honestly considered telling Giratina to leave right there. The thought was so tempting, so irresistible. Its insidious voice practically begged her to speak the command.

But she couldn't. Giratina held knowledge she could never hope to obtain. It would be foolish to turn away such vital information, even if it did come from an unsettling entity.

Glace sighed deeply.

 _Alright, I'll accept your help. However, don't think I trust you completely. I'm keeping an eye on you._

 _ **Of course. Be as suspicious as your heart desires. It doesn't bother me in the slightest.**_

Glace saw a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye. She snapped her gaze toward it to find the fleeting image of a Patrat wandering into the distance. The moment Glace saw it, she felt gnawing deep in her stomach. She realized that she hadn't eaten since she was in Jera's dimension. She didn't think she had been in Ker's dimension from that long, but the gnawing felt far too similar to a punch in the gut for that to be true. She could already feel the saliva gathering in her mouth.

 _ **Go ahead, Glace. You need nourishment. I'll provide you the peace you want now.**_

Then with those words, Giratina's presence disappeared altogether. Glace wasted no time creeping after the Patrat. She made sure that she stayed low to the ground until she could see the Patrat clearly in her sight. She could see it walking on all fours with its back to her. She needed everything to stay this way. Patrat couldn't sense anyone from behind them very well. It made for a perfect a blind spot.

The Weavile silently prowled closer and closer to the Patrat, watching for any sudden movements in her prey's tail. It remained oblivious with its tail remaining stuck high in the air. It eventually stopped to rub at its cheeks and eyes, but Glace only continued her advance.

Soon there was only a few feet of space between the two. The Patrat still didn't notice her. Glace could practically taste that delicious Patrat's blood in her mouth right now, its savory sweetness trickling down her throat.

She swiftly pounced at her prey.

The Patrat stood no chance. The moment Glace made contact with her prey, she slashed open its throat. There was no struggle. There were no screams. There was only the smell of fresh blood spilling onto the flowers and grass, tarnishing this peaceful haven with death.

Glace wasted no time in digging her claws into the corpse and devouring her meal. She ripped into it with ravenous intent, relishing the salty taste of her meal with each bite. Nothing else mattered to her in this moment. Not how Giratina now resided in her mind, not the fact that she had no idea where she even was, and not even the comments her other selves were making. There was only the primal need to quench her hunger.

The Weavile felt a warm, numbing feeling when she had eaten her fill. She sat down in the grass beside the gruesome remains of her meal and licked the blood from her claws. She would need to continue her journey as soon as she was done. She knew that. This was only an interlude in her grand quest.

It was with this thought however, that Glace realized it wasn't time to continue that journey yet. There was something else she had to do before she could search for the others.

 _Hey Yore, did you still want to go visit your guild?_

She could feel the Tranquill's heart leap in her chest. She couldn't stop herself from smiling as his joy radiated throughout her being.

 _Yes, I would. We don't have to stay long, however. I only want to visit my guild and give my proper farewell to them through you, if you don't mind._

 _Of course. You don't want to visit your family though?_

All of the warmth filling Glace's chest faded away. Now the slightest hint of a chasm resided where her heart beat.

 _My caretakers are dead, I'm afraid. There would be no one to visit if I were to return home._

 _Oh. I didn't realize._

 _Don't concern yourself with it. They've been dead for quite some time. I think it was during my fifth year as a sentry that I received word of their passing, but I cannot quite remember exactly how long it's been._

But even though Yore said these reassuring words, the hollow feeling remained. Glace could feel it weighing down upon her.

So that was why Yore had never left his guild; he had no home to return to. His guild was the closest thing to a home, but even then, he had known it wasn't. Even the other guild members, despite being acquainted with them, could never be the family he had lost.

Yore, despite everything he had done for his peaceful little town, had been a lonely Tranquill.

 _Aww, Yore. I know you don't want us to feel bad for you, but… I really am sorry your parents are dead. I would hug you if I could._

Yore didn't respond to Sonata's remark, but the consuming void in Glace's chest disappeared, giving way to some relief. She breathed deeply as she relished in the blankness that was her own emotions, not anyone else's. She already hated the idea that she was sharing feelings with her other selves, but she would gladly take this over sharing their memories. She could still hear Downfall in her mind, so very pleased with her accomplishments. She could still feel the tears streaming down her face when she realized she had to leave him.

If she ever had to live through that again…

 _Let's get going. I think we've spent enough time here. Sonata, show me which tear I need to use to get to Yore's dimension._

 _Okay! Let's see… ah-hah! There it is!_

All of the dimensional rips returned to Glace's sight with the mere blink of her eye. One in the distance seemed to give off an iridescent glint, like the way a crystal might shine in the light. Glace didn't even need to ask Sonata why it glimmered so. She only knew that it would take about five minutes to reach.

 _ **Hmmm, interesting way of traveling between realities.**_

 _What do you mean?_

 _ **Ah, but it's such an inferior method of travel. It is no wonder it takes you so long to reach the others. Here, Glace, allow me to show you a much more efficient way to traverse the multiverse. I think you will quite like it.**_

Glace's claws suddenly filled with a dark power that made them ghoulish, violet wisps. She held them to her eyes in amazement, watching her hands flicker and crackle with strange energy that was not her own.

 _ **There is no reason to use those miniscule rips in the barriers. Think of your destination, and then create your own tear. The multiverse will heed your call and offer you direct passage to the destination you seek.**_

 _Will the tear I make still suck me into the dimension? Every time I wanted to travel, the dimension would yank me inside. It felt like someone grabbing me._

 _ **Ketetet. No, Glace. The multiverse will obey you with this power; it will not treat you as a meaningless speck.**_

Glace didn't know what to think of that, but chose not to ponder in it too much. She instead focused her thoughts on Yore's dimension and the quiet city that he resided in. She imagined the flowers, the windmills, the guild, the post office, the watchtower Yore stood upon every day…

She swiped at the air as these thoughts circled in her mind. The familiar sensation of the multiverse's binding brushed against her clawtips. Now she just needed to wait for the binding to catch in her claws and then she'd struggle to open the tear further. After all, mortals weren't supposed to be able to tamper with reality.

But much to her surprise, something else happened. Her claws tore straight through the barrier with disturbing ease, sundering it apart. Ethereal streams of lilac, orange, gold, and turquoise escaped from the tear and leaked into her world. They swept through the air as though they were languid strokes of paint and the world was their canvas. They very much reminded her of creeks that she would sometimes come across. The colors flowed so gently, gracefully curling and twisting through the air as though they had their own invisible trees and rocks to maneuver around.

Glace retracted her claw from the tear. She watched in awe as the newly-formed rip accommodated her size, widening and lengthening without her needing to do anything. It was only a matter of seconds before it had become just large enough for her to enter with ease.

Glace anticipated the yank, the pull that always dragged her into a dimension whenever she tampered with reality's fabric. However, there was nothing. Just as Giratina had promised, the tear only welcomed her, beckoning her with its dreamy lights and the crystal-clear image of Lilac City in its center. Particularly, the post office that she had visited, still that odd Pelipper-like building.

 _ **You see? You see how much easier this is?**_

 _It's amazing. It's much better than what Sonata taught me._

 _Hey! That was the only thing I could come up with. There's only like two people in my dimension who have any idea how to travel through dimensions. And even then, they thought I was weird for even asking about it since I'm just some spy._

 _ **Ah, so that is how you learned. You only had mortal help, limited as it is. However, you no longer need to rely on that mortal help. While useful before, what I provide now is far superior.**_

 _Well hopefully…_

 _ **Go on, Glace. Fling yourself through the tear and show Sonata here how much more efficient it is to travel this way.**_

Glace let Giratina remove its power from her claws. She gazed at the tear and took the time to marvel at the wondrous display of colors escaping from its edges. She felt she could watch these colors forever, watch them swirl lackadaisically before her, and be perfectly content for the rest of her life.

However, there was work to be done. She had a promise to keep to Yore. So with a begrudging groan, she averted her attention from the beautiful sight and then leapt into the rift.

* * *

Glace felt cobblestone beneath her feet when she finished her jump. It was such a stark contrast to the ticklish, soft grass that she flinched. She looked behind her just in time to see the rift closing up. She almost wanted to reach out to the tear as the barrier between realities etched itself back together, taking with it those otherworldly colors that made her feel so comfortable. Now only the rest of the ordinary place she found herself in filled her vision, offering her the mundane view of the sun shining down on her, the trees, the distant outlines of faraway buildings, and even more of the cobblestone road leading away into deeper parts of the town.

The Weavile brought her gaze back to what stood before her. Just as she had hoped, she now found herself before the post-office she had seen in the rift. It was the exact same one she had visited when searching for Yore, the odd, Pelipper-shaped building it was. Though, she couldn't help but notice that the paint no longer peeled off its exterior. The building seemed almost brand new, as though it had a fresh coat of paint applied to it earlier that day.

It hardly mattered, in the end. Glace knew for certain that this was Yore's dimension. This was the post office she had visited seemingly an eternity ago. She could even see some windmills in the distance, standing idle atop their grassy hills.

 _Looks like we're here, Yore._

 _Yes, I see this. Ah, it feels so strange being here again._

 _Are you feeling nervous?_

 _Yes, though also happy. I suppose you can call it anxiousness. But there's no reason to be worried. I'll feel better as soon as I see my old guild._

 _Alright. Do you mind telling me where to go? I can't remember how to get there from here._

 _Of course._

Yore conveyed his directions in the form of a mental roadmap of the entire town. She would need to walk forward and follow the road all the way down until a new path appeared on the left. Then, she would take this new path until she spotted the Guard Guild in all its grandeur. If she wanted to, she could even stop by the Miltank Café, which was right across the street from the guild. Then, if she wanted to visit her hutch, all she had to do was go out into the forest bordering the city and climb up the particular evergreen with the Hoothoot-sized hollow in the middle of its trunk. If she wanted to catch some Magikarp, all she had to do was walk a couple of miles north and find herself at the river she always looked over. If she wanted to fly very far away from everyone, to escape to that lake where no one could ever find her, all she had to do was…

Glace stopped herself as she rubbed at her head. The directions had come across quite clear, but a whole lot of other things had come with it – engrained things, nostalgic things, habitual things, and a hoard of all Yore's sentiments and memories, happy and sad, from his years of life here. Memories that were hers, but at the same time, not hers.

In that single instant, she knew everything there was to know about this humble little place, from the name of every street, to the size of every tree, to the color of each and every flower garden. More knowledge, perhaps, than a single Pokémon ought to know.

It was overwhelming.

 _Ah, sorry, Glace. I didn't mean to do that. I was only trying to develop a route for you, but it seems you've gained much more than that._

 _It's fine, Yore. It wasn't your fault. It helps at least, since I think it's best that I clean myself up a bit. Hmm, apparently there's a pond near here?_

 _Yes. It's a small one and a bit hidden, so not many Pokémon ever visit it. It's mostly a place where some wild bug-types dwell. I sometimes go there to catch myself a Caterpie whenever there's a craving for one._

 _It'll do. I think I can get there without too much trouble._

It seemed like a nice pond. It was easy to see one's reflection in it, as well as the reflection of the trees towering right behind you. It seemed quiet and peaceful. All she needed to do was go the opposite way she was facing, walk until she saw the home where that Ursaring kept all those flocks of Pidgey, and then sneak into the forest behind his house. Then, she'd wander until she saw that very large and imposing Ariados web, and then make a left until…

Glace grabbed her head again. The onslaught of directions stopped, leaving her mind at peace. She reveled in the silence for a moment longer, and then began her journey toward the pond she could clearly see in her mind's eye.

Glace soon found herself in the residential area that she had anticipated. With it being the early afternoon, quite a number of Pokémon were out and about. There weren't as many here as there had been in the more commercial areas of the town, but their presence was noticeable all the same. Glace noted that many of them were children running around. They chased each other throughout the neighborhood, hid from one another in a sort of game, and even tackled one another and engaged in harmless fights. Their playful laughter rang clear in the neighborhood, instantly reminding Glace of Jera's cavern and the orphans she had grown to know during her short visit.

However, what caught Glace's attention the most were a young Aipom and Litten gathered around a peculiar object extending out of the ground at the edge of the street. She couldn't tell what it was from her distance, but it seemed quite tall and thin and had a colorful prism resting on its top. She didn't remember seeing something like that the last time she had been to Yore's dimension.

 _Neither do I, Glace. I don't recall any of these strange things ever being here._

 _I suppose there's only one way to find out what they are then._

The Weavile made her way over to the strange object and then stopped right before it. The Aipom and Litten didn't hurry away from her. The two only remained there with Glace before the Aggron-tall spectacle. She realized now that the both of them had their paws on the base of the contraption and had a faraway look in their eyes, as if they were in a deep daydream.

"Hey, what's this thing that you're touching?" Glace asked.

The two both blinked, and clarity instantly returned to their eyes. They removed their paws from the object and looked over at Glace.

"What do you mean?" the Aipom asked.

"This thing that's right next to us, what exactly is it?" Glace asked again as she pointed to the object.

"It's lamp post, silly!" the Aipom said with a giggle.

"A what?"

"A lamp post! You know, the things that let us check the weather and see all of the stuff's that been going on."

The Aipom tilted his head to the side as he looked at her cautiously.

"Are you okay? You're asking funny questions," the Aipom stated.

Glace didn't know how she wanted to respond to that. It didn't help that she could actually feel Yore hastily digging through his memories in some desperate attempt to recall anything that resembled these supposed lamp posts. She could see the memories, but they flew by her so quickly that she only caught the slightest glimpses of them.

 _Might as well tell them that you're not from around here. That always works for me when I'm in some other town on spy missions!_

"… I'm not from here," Glace recited slowly. "There's none of these lamp posts in my town."

"Really? I thought every town had lamp posts by now," the Aipom said.

"Maybe she's from one of those towns that doesn't trust them," the Litten suggested. "Isn't St. Jasper City like that? Didn't they say something about how they were worried that the lamp posts would get into their heads and spy on all of their memories and thoughts?"

"Nah, St. Jasper isn't the place. They used them to make their prison a whole lot better," the Aipom assured. "I think it was some small little town near here. Uhhhhh, what was it called?"

"These lamp posts, what exactly are they?" Glace cut in. "I still don't understand what they're for."

"Well lamp posts are these awesome inventions that do all kinds of cool stuff," the Aipom began as he gestured to the strange device. "You touch them, and then they tell you all kinds of information! Like if you want to know how to get somewhere, it'll give you directions. Or if you want to know where you can eat some Remoraid, it'll tell you some good restaurants to go to. Things like that. And of course, they keep the streets lit at dark. So we don't need to use torches or anything."

"I see," Glace said with a slow nod.

"But some towns don't like using lamp posts, like yours," the Aipom said with a shrug. "It's too bad, because they're really nice. Makes life a whole lot easier."

"Too bad I won't be able to use them when I become an Incineroar," the Litten said with a sigh. "Still can't make these things work for dark-types."

"Then just don't evolve," the Aipom said snidely. "Those things look ugly anyway."

The Litten glared at the Aipom as he flattened his ears against his head. The Aipom snickered.

"Oh come on, you know I'm not the only one who thinks that," the Aipom sniggered. "What kind of evolution is that, looking like some Machoke that got a really bad sunburn? Not to mention having that stupid flame belt around your waist. Seriously, what kind of Litten wants to end up like that?"

The Litten then pounced at his supposed friend, but the Aipom leapt away just in time. He only laughed more as he fled the scene on all fours. The Litten wasted no time in chasing after him.

Glace brought her gaze back over to the lamp post. Nothing had changed about it. It still stood before her, silent as could be, casting triangles of light down onto the ground from its glassy top.

 _Still couldn't find anything about lamp posts in your memories?_

 _No, I couldn't. Nothing resembling these strange things ever existed here when I still lived here._

 _They could have built them while you were gone._

 _Yes, but how long were we gone? I realize time moves differently in each of the dimensions, Jera herself is proof of that, but we couldn't have been gone for that long. We only visited two dimensions total and hardly spent much time in any of them._

Glace could feel Yore fidgeting in her mind, rationalizing everything happening before him. While it certainly didn't break her heart in half like when she had been forced to live through Sonata's memories, it still shook her. She could feel the dread seeping into her, urging her to pace about.

 _Giratina, how long have we been gone?_

 _ **Rephrase your question. You're being far too vague for my liking.**_

 _How long have we been gone from this dimension? You said you know a lot about the multiverse, so surely you must know how much time has passed since I was last here with Sonata._

 _ **Ah, and that is where you are wrong. Understand that you're correct in presuming that time flows differently between the dimensions, making hundreds of years pass in one but only days in another. However, I don't know the exact relationship between all of the dimensions. To keep track of an infinite amount of realities is impossible.**_

 _I thought you said you were beyond mortal limitations._

 _ **I am, but even that is beyond my own limitations. Besides, I never had any use in comparing the temporal differences between the realities. What did it matter if none of the realities interacted with one another? They all remain unaware of one another. Mortals were never meant to enter into realities that are not theirs. Only those like myself have any reason to access the multiverse.**_

 _Fine. Yore, calm down. We're going to go visit your guild now._

 _You sure you don't want to go to the pond first? I can wait a f-_

 _No, you can't. You want to go to the guild right now. You want to make sure everyone is still there. You want to know if everyone hates you for leaving. You want to know if that Miltank Café still exists right across the street. But above everything else, you want to meet the Pokémon who took your place in the watchtower… and you want to know if they're any better at their job than you were. Am I right?_

… _Yes._

 _That's what I thought._

The Weavile turned on her heel and then walked back the way she came. There was a sulking feeling in her chest, worsening with every step. She wanted to think she was only feeling her own emotions now. It would make sense, considering how snappy she had been to her other self that had only wanted to help her. However, she realized these feelings could very well be Yore's as well. He too must have been sulking at the thought that Glace had exposed all of his self-centered thoughts. They had been perfectly reasonable when considering his condition, but still self-centered all the same. So then what was it? Was this horrible feeling Yore's, or was it hers?

Maybe it didn't matter anymore. Maybe everything Yore felt was actually her emotions. Maybe Yore himself actually was Glace now. Maybe…

No, it couldn't be like that. Yore wasn't Glace. The two were separate from one another. She could still tell what thoughts and memories belonged to him. She still knew that he was a sentry of a guild and she was a former dojo trainer and huntress for a nomadic Weavile clan. There was no reason to think they were merging in mind.

Sometime later, Glace switched paths as she needed to. It wasn't much longer before she entered into the more commercialized area of town. For the most part, it hadn't changed since she had last visited. There was the Dreamland Bakery that sold those chesto bread loaves that perked you right up, the Persian Bank run by those Persian twins who had always had that eager shine in their eyes, and the Between the Lines bookstore that always held those parties whenever the most popular book were to release to the public. Then of course, there was Daisy's Market taking up so much space, the top grocer that always had the best selection of fruits and seeds. Glace never went anywhere else whenever she needed more Plain Seeds. She didn't know what it was, but there was something special about Daisy's seeds. They stayed in her stomach longer. They still tasted as plain as any other Plain Seed, but then again, everything tasted rather bland. She couldn't remember the last time something actually had a lasting taste that…

Glace stopped the thought from going on any longer. No, she had never been to any of these places before. She had never eaten a single Plain Seed in her life. None of these were her memories. How many more times was this going to happen to her?

 _Glace, there's more of those odd lamp posts here as well._

Glace looked toward the edge of the street, and sure enough, saw the odd contraption Yore spoke of. She actually saw multiple of them, each planted a good few yards of distance away from each other. They stretched all the way down the street, forming a string of posts that surely went further beyond into the deeper parts of the city. Glace could see a single Minun in front of the lamp post nearest to her, pressing its paw into the base. She glanced over at the others to find many of the others with similar amounts of Pokémon gathered around the lamps, though a couple did remain empty for the time being.

 _These lamp posts don't seem that new. The glass on the top doesn't shine as much as new glass should. But even still, how long could they have been here? I don't remember any construction happening in this area while I lived here, nor any plans of construction._

 _The stores you remember are still here at least. So, maybe we haven't been gone for too long. Maybe we've been gone for only a few years._

 _That's still longer than I had hoped we had been gone… though I do suppose it's better than being gone for centuries. If only a few years have passed, even if it's twelve years, then perhaps my guild and all those that I worked with still remain._

 _I'm sure they do._

Glace picked up her pace and weaved her way through the street. She tried not to pay too much attention to the Pokémon bustling all around her. She had one job and one job only in this dimension; let Yore see his guild. There was nothing else she needed to do here. She couldn't allow herself to be absorbed in the buzzing activity of the town. If she even allowed herself anymore time in observing her surroundings, she'd be caught in that unstoppable chain of Yore's memories.

She only looked straight ahead as she neared the guild. She could see it now in the distance, its towering mass looming over the rest of the buildings like a mountain. She didn't see the red flag that had been perched at the very top, but Glace didn't concern herself with it. They had probably changed the design of the guild while they were gone.

Just a little more, and then she'd be at the guild. She needed to walk for another minute or two, and then Yore could see his guild members and everything would be fine. Then, she could leave this dimension behind and go after her next fragment. Who it was going to be, Glace didn't know. She only hoped that Sonata could offer someone that was more tethered to her realm of understanding than Ker.

Glace arrived at the guild. Much to her relief, and undoubtedly Yore's, the guild appeared exactly the same as it had last time she'd visited. There were of course those strange lamp posts all over the guild with just as many lilacs that Glace knew weren't there before, but it was the guild all the same. She could recognize that brick building anywhere, even without the flag at the top raveling in the wind.

The Weavile took a deep breath, and then made her way into the guild. A few Pokémon passed her by as she walked through the corridors of the place, though none that she recognized. She didn't spot Rale, Bree, Aiden, Vert, or any of the Pokémon that sometimes invited her to outings. Then again, maybe they were in the middle of their shifts right now. She only saw them in the evening.

Adze was probably around though. He was her supervisor, and she was sure that he was always at his counter until the day ended. He was always there, sorting through papers and managing those like Glace. He was the only one she was going to find unless she wanted to wait until sunset.

 _Adze will be there. He has to be there._

Glace's heartbeat became thready, prompting her to move even faster. She barely registered walking as she swiftly made her way to her supervisor's area. What felt like an eternity later, she found herself exactly where she wanted to be. At least, that's what she thought. The room had changed since the last time she had been there. The familiar shelves of papers and books filed neatly still stood behind the counter, but now there were other things in this room. Namely, an odd, metallic box that took up an entire wall of the room. It flashed with odd lights as certain words appeared on a black screen, listing names and locations Glace had never heard of. A tangle of wires connected to the box crawled up and connected to a lamp on a nearby wall that very much resembled the lamp posts Glace saw outside. This lamp, unlike the ones outside however, gave off an otherworldly blue color that very much reminded Glace of the rift she had opened up earlier. It cast the entire room with this dreamlike color, and for a moment, Glace wondered if this lamp actually was a portal to another dimension.

"Can I help you?"

Glace brought her gaze over to a doorway near the counter. She anticipated her supervisor to be there, wearing that bored expression he always had when not doing anything in particular. But unfortunately, the Pokémon wasn't a Haxorus. It was instead a Sceptile, and an oddly jovial one at that.

"I'm looking for Adze," Glace said after a moment. "Have you seen him?"

"Adze? I'm afraid I don't quite recognize that name," the Sceptile said as he scratched his chin. "Are you sure that's his name?"

"He's a Haxorus, and he works here," Glace insisted. "He's the supervisor for everyone who acts as security for this city."

"Hmmmm, give me a moment to look for him."

Glace watched as the Sceptile went over to the odd metal device. He pressed his claws into a few buttons and keys with loud clicking sounds.

"Adze… Haxorus… hmmm, still not getting anything," the Sceptile hummed. "Has this Adze ever used a lamp post before? He won't be in the system if he hasn't."

"I don't think so," Glace said slowly.

"Ah, well then that's a problem. Either way, there are no Haxorus that work here. I wish I could help you more, but unfortunately, our lamp posts aren't developed enough for that. You'd have to go to somewhere like Whitewater City if you wanted the more sophisticated lamp posts. The ones there can actually look at your memories and tell you who's in them."

Whitewater. That wasn't a flower. All of the cities in the region were named after flowers, at least, all of the ones within a certain radius of Lilac City. But this Sceptile wouldn't have named a city if it was so far away.

Whitewater… where was it?

Whitewater. Whitewater. Whitewater. Whitewater. Whitewater.

WhitewaterWhitewaterWhitewaterWhitewaterWhitewaterWhi

"Are you okay? You look like you're lost in another world."

Glace looked back up at the Sceptile. Now that pleasant, helpful grin on his face was gone. Now all that remained was an anxious stare that sincerely did want to help her even though he probably had a million better things to do.

"Where's Rale?" she asked tersely. "Where's Bree? Where's Aiden? Where's Vert? Where's Ven? Where's Lan-"

"Hold on, slow down. Give me a moment to type in those names," the Sceptile said as he held up one of his claws. "Just wait a moment, okay?"

Glace took in a deep breath as the clicking returned. Everything was fine. This Sceptile would be able to find one of her acquaintances, she was sure of it. The only reason he couldn't find Adze was because he had probably retired. Glace couldn't blame him for that; he had been rather old to begin with. Then again, all dragons lived to be quite old. She thought their age was only rivaled by the Ninetales, as well as that odd Eevee evolution. What was that evolution called again? That normal-type one that was so rare because the transformation requirements were so difficult to fulfill?

"What are the species of the names you gave me?" the Sceptile asked.

"Lucario, Butterfree, Pyroar, Heracross, and Scyther respectively," Glace answered automatically.

"Alright. Well listen, I looked up those names, and there are some that do have those names. However, none of them match the species that you just named. Like there's a Quilava named Aiden, but there's no Pyroar named Aiden."

Glace stared at the Sceptile.

That couldn't be right. How could none of their names be in that device? It was with this thought Glace realized now that she had no idea how that device even worked. She needed to fix that. She couldn't react until she understood everything.

"What is that device you're using?" Glace decided to ask. "How does it work?"

"This machine allows me to access all of the lamp posts in the city," the Sceptile answered, as patient as ever. "All I have to do is type in a name, and then it allows me to see the one who has that name and a number of things about them. It tells me about their background, if they have one, as well as any other names they might have used. It's what we use here to make sure no one we allow into the city is potentially dangerous."

"I thought you had a sentry on top of a watchtower for that," Glace stated blandly.

"Ahahah, ah, no. We haven't had to do that for a looooong time," the Sceptile laughed. "We just have visitors use the lamp posts at the gates of the city. They just need to touch the lamp post, and then the lamp post compares their identity to a list of all the suspicious individuals in the world. If they match anyone in our list, then they're forced to go away. Ahah. I want to know where you got the funny idea that we still use sentries. I don't think anybody's done that in the past fifty years. Well, except maybe those few paranoid towns…"

Glace could see the world turning into a mess of random shapes and colors before her eyes as the words slowly sank in. Fifty years since sentries were used. Fifty years.

Fifty years since a sentry was needed.

The lamp posts were her replacement. They didn't need her anymore.

She needed to get to the watchtower. She needed to know if it was still there. She needed to know if there really wasn't a sentry there anymore.

She ran out of the guild. She could hear the Sceptile calling after her, but his words were jumbled and incoherent. It didn't matter though; she no longer needed to talk to him.

It wasn't long before Glace found herself at the border of the city and before the watchtower she stood upon every single day. As the Sceptile had said, there was a lamp post right beside it, quite a bit larger than all of the others she had seen throughout the day. However, Glace paid it little mind. She directed her attention to the watchtower and found that it still stood there, looming over her as it always had. She didn't see anyone perched at the very top however, making the tower seem lonely and purposeless. It very much reminded Glace of herself before she had left the dimension.

Glace wasted no time in climbing up the tower. She heard it creak and shudder beneath her feet, but she ignored it. She only ascended higher and higher until she found herself at the very top. A thick layer of dust clung to the floor and bars, as well as an alarming number of dead, crinkled leaves. It was evident that no one had been on this tower for a long time.

Fifty years had done this.

Glace peered into the city behind her from her new height. In a way, so little had changed. She could still see all of the buildings she could always see from this height. She could still see the hills and the windmills in the distance, and the vague semblance of other flying-types in the distance. But at the same time, it wasn't her city anymore. She could clearly see the lamp posts on every street, invading her hometown like an invasive weed might. She imagined in another few years, there would be more lamp posts than buildings.

Fifty years had done this.

Glace had been gone for fifty years, probably more. Everyone she had ever known was gone. Everything she had dedicated her life to was gone.

She had abandoned her life without warning, and now it had abandoned her.

It was all gone.

Gone.

Gone.

… _hey…_

Gone.

Gone.

 _Hey…_

Gone.

Gone.

And it was all her fault. If she had been a good sentry and told everyone she was leaving, none of this would have happened. But she hadn't. She had left like a coward and now she could never undo the damage.

Now everyone she ever knew was gone.

The world had moved on without her.

 _HEY!_

Suddenly, a million random images bombarded Glace's mind. There were hunting trips with some Weavile, killing someone named Veneur because he was trying to kill her first, this Flareon that tried to burn her alive but got some of her feathers instead, kicking a Snover in the stomach and telling him he needed to improve his technique…

No, those weren't random images. They all seemed very familiar somehow. Somewhere, she had seen these things. But where? She hadn't ever gone hunting before; she was only a sentry before he had to-

The realization struck her with the force and suddenness of an icicle to the chest.

These were her _actual_ memories.

Glace flinched as everything that was her came flooding back into her. As they forced their way back into her, they shoved all of what was Yore back into the darkness of her mind where he belonged. A headache split through her head as she and Yore had their minds spliced apart, forcing her to sink into a sitting position.

 _Glace… Glace, are you…. uh, you again?_

Glace could hear Sonata's words quite clearly in her mind despite the pain, but she couldn't find it in herself to respond to them. She could only hold her head in her claws. Her _Weavile_ claws, claws of a huntress, not a sentry.

 _Glace… look, it's okay. I mean, I know what happened was probably really weird, but you're you again! So you know, everything's fine now._

She had been Yore. She had been wandering around that city as Yore, believing all of his memories and his thoughts were her own.

 _Glace, can you please answer me?_

How long could she have stayed like that if Sonata hadn't snapped her out of it? Would she have begun to think she was a Tranquill too and that she could fly? Would she actually turn into a Tranquill the same way she had mentally turned into Yore?

 _Yore? Yore, are you there?_

Would this happen again? Would she become one of her other selves if she dared to go back to their dimensions? Or did that not need to happen for it to work? Did she just need to assimilate her other selves and that would be enough? That was what had happened with Sonata after all. That Noivern had been thinking about those painful memories, and then she had sucked Glace into them in her place.

 _Ohhhh, Giratina! What do I do? They're not responding at all. I don't know if they can hear me anymore…_

 _ **They can hear you, but I'm afraid there's nothing you can do at this point. They are in shock at what has happened, for varying reasons.**_

 _Well is there something you can do? I mean, you're Giratina for crying out loud!_

 _ **Ketetet. Ah, it's endless amusing watching you mortals, always begging your gods for their divine help. As though you honestly think they can hear your every prayer.**_

 _Giratina, you're not helping! Please, get them back to normal!_

Glace needed to get out of this dimension. She needed to get away from Yore's memories. She needed to get away from everything that resembled her other selves.

The Weavile stood up and flexed her claws. Not even a second later, Giratina's power poured into her veins. She tore apart the dimensional barrier, though with no regard as to where she wanted to go. She honestly didn't care where she went.

She only needed to be as far away from here as possible.

The Weavile gazed at the swirling colors before her for a moment longer, and then leapt into the tear.


	13. Let Me In

Ker was still fuming even after she emerged from the other side of her portal.

Meeting with that Weavile, Tranquill, and Noivern had been an utter waste of time. Grim had made it seem so important, like her existence would abruptly end unless she spoke with those three, but it had amounted to absolutely nothing. They had only been three lunatics, endlessly prattling. She didn't know how they lived with themselves, honestly believing their inane delusions. She couldn't even begin to fathom why they thought _she_ would believe a single word they said either.

There was an explanation for this, Ker then realized. In a dimension primarily ruled by humans, they had a saying that ants could never hope to comprehend humans. How could ants, simple creatures that only knew to scavenge for their colony, ever understand the humans who build entire societies across multiple lands and domesticate creatures of lesser intelligence? Ants couldn't. Their feeble, primal minds could only comprehend primitive instincts. To them, a human is nothing but an obstacle, something to avoid if they wanted to continue about their insignificant lives.

Ker realized now that those mortals she spoke with were her metaphorical ants. They could only see the multiverse with their limited perspective. It was impossible for them to be able to view existence as she could.

Oh, but what did this epiphany matter? She had still wasted so much time with those idiotic mortals. If those mortals hadn't shown up, she would still be with Gallows. She would be wandering through the vast multiverse with him drifting by her side, searching for perfect targets to practice techniques on. Or maybe if she wasn't bettering herself, she and Gallows would be having fun of their own. That amusingly sinister ghost was always a pleasure to be with, no matter what they were doing together. She couldn't ever think of a time she was ever bored of him. Every word he spoke was an alluring whisper, a perfect gateway to her soul. Every momentary touch, even the faintest brush against her form as he drifted past her, was a rush of buzzing, exhilarating energy. Then of course when he was actually _trying_ to tease her, and that was always an experience.

But Ker couldn't have any of that now because of those mortals. Because of them, she had to search for that Chandelure, something that made her antsy. She had never wanted to part ways with him. If she could have it her way, she'd spend every single moment of her existence with him. She didn't have the obligations and limitations mortals had, besides the occasional welcoming ceremony for new ghosts. She didn't need to commit to a mundane job, didn't need to sleep to recuperate after a long day, and didn't need to visit anyone else that demanded her company. She could do anything her heart desired in her literal eternity of a life whenever she wanted, however long she wanted.

At least, that was true until that unfortunate encounter. She hoped an eldritch abomination was in those mortals' dimension right now, plaguing their lives with horrid nightmares as it relished their beautiful screams. Ker could practically hear their shrieks now, a melody of suffering stringing the night. It almost made her forget about the seething bitterness clawing at her soul.

Ker took in her surroundings. She found herself standing along the shoreline of a beach, the crashing waves of the ocean the only sounds to keep her company. The sun had long set into the horizon, allowing a comforting blanket of darkness to cover the sky. She could see a few constellations offering their soft glimmers of light in eternal black, but they paled in comparison to the radiance of the two crescent moons. Their soft, ethereal lights cast a faint, white aura over the horizon, as well as ripple along ocean's surface in the form of two pillars. Though the light wasn't as encompassing as the sun's, it allowed Ker to see the beach with all the clarity she needed. She could see the foam of the waves as they rolled onto the shore, the muted brown grains of moist sand holding all the footprints of its daytime visitors, and even a few tiny crabs scurrying into the water. She never needed much light to see, or really any at all, but she had to admit that it did feel nice to have something radiating her way, however dim it was.

The rolling waves rushed past her legs, but the water didn't break as it collided against her form. It only swept past her and retreated back into the ocean, as though she didn't exist at all. Ker didn't even feel the blast of cold, but she had grown to expect that. After all, how could she feel anything when she didn't have a real body?

Ker strode across the sand and kept an eye out for even the vaguest semblance of a purple flame. She had told him to meet her along the shoreline of this particular ocean, but she had never specifically said what part of it. She had anticipated that she would spot his fire in an instant, like a beacon in the middle of a treacherous storm. However, now that she was actually here, she realized that had been a terrible plan on her part. Gallows's flames, while eye-catching and far brighter than feeble candlelight, weren't exactly bonfires. If he wandered into the midst of a thick fog, his light wouldn't shine through the grey; the mist would only subdue his flames' glow.

Ker groaned at her own stupidity. Next time she saw him, she was going to make their meeting spot somewhere more defined and less spacious. Maybe she could take him to that one insidious night club running amok with devils just waiting for a perfect moment to devour the drunken prey they had so masterfully lured in with promises of intoxicating pleasures. She had wanted to visit that place again, if only because it was deeply satisfying watching mortals' bombastic ecstasy abruptly get swallowed up by escalating hysteria.

Or maybe she would make their next meeting spot that one abandoned castle in-

Something curled around Ker's arm. It yanked her off her feet before dragging her into the sand. Ker squirmed and lashed out of whatever held her captive, but found it had coiled itself around her entire arm, like a snake does when it suffocates its prey. It felt just like one with how the body felt smooth and slender, yet gripped her with an impossible strength.

"Hello again, Ker."

A purple flame lit up in front of the Sableye, followed by a pair of glowing yellow eyes so pleased to see her. Ker's heart melted a little at the sight. She hurried to her feet before she pressed her forehead into the space between Gallows's eyes. Despite his glass-like form, nuzzling him didn't bring Ker any sort of discomfort.

Gallows chucked to himself as he released his grip around her wrist. He tried to swoop back, but Ker swiftly grabbed one of his tendrils and pulled him back to her. She needed his warmth, his ghostly fire licking at her.

"It seems that someone really missed me," Gallows cooed softly.

"Yeah…" Ker muttered quietly, almost too embarrassed to say the word aloud. "I… I did. A lot."

Even though that Chandelure didn't have a mouth, Ker thought she saw something resembling a devious smile in the light of his fire. But she couldn't check more closely, because Gallows tied one end of a tendril around her arm and pried her away from him. Ker pouted and pounced at him, but he only drifted out of the way.

"Hey, get back here!" Ker whined.

Ker lunged at him yet again, but Gallows darted to the side all the same. His eyes gleamed with that teasing light as he unwound his tendril from her and sped out to the moonlit ocean. He stopped a short distance away from the shoreline and beckoned her with his frolicking flames.

Ker gritted her teeth. Oh, she understood what was happening now; he was toying with her. Most boys would give anything to have someone as affectionate as Ker. They would immediately welcome the warm embraces and loving kisses of someone who wanted them and only them.

But not Gallows. Ker knew that tricky ghost refused to be so eager. He preferred to drive her mad, to revel in her desperate longing. He would only indulge Ker in her desires after he had deemed her torment adequate.

Well, if that was how he wanted to be…

Ker chased after the ghost and ran straight into the foamy waves. She sank deeper and deeper into the ocean the further she went, but the water didn't slow her in the slightest. To her, traveling through the water felt the same as walking across the sand. Yet another joy of not having a real body.

It took Ker a laughable five seconds to reunite with Gallows. As soon as she was right beneath him, he swooped into the far deeper parts of the ocean. Particularly, the parts of the ocean where one couldn't walk on the bottom anymore, if one could even see it. Gallows must have thought he was so clever. After all, though she couldn't possibly drown, how would she be able to catch him? By the time she would surface from the murky depths and grasp for him, he could have flown far beyond her reach.

Oh, but that was where Gallows was wrong…

Ker swam through the water as gracefully as a sea serpent. Rather, she flew through it. She didn't need to swim, as moving through the water was exactly the same as traveling through walls. She stayed just below the surface as she rushed toward Gallows. It was quite fortunate that he wasn't trying to hide from her like he had been before; his violet flames served as a perfect beacon in the darkness. Of course, he was probably only doing so because he couldn't make his game _too_ difficult. After all, Ker was sure that he wantedher to catch him. He only wanted to make everything a challenge, a hilarious endeavor. Such a funny ghost he was.

She drifted through the black ocean, silent as could be, until she found herself right beneath Gallows's hovering form. Then, before he had any chance to react, Ker shot out of the water like a Prinplup. She latched onto Gallows's tendrils with her claws, tightening her hold as she giggled. Gallows tried to shake Ker off of him, but she wasn't going to let him have any of that. No, he wasn't the only one allowed to have fun in this game.

Ker giggled as she pulled her face up near the Chandelure's own, and then licked the spot underneath his left eye. Gallows made that comical hissing sound as his flames shuddered. The air still didn't have that sweet flavor Ker craved from him, but his reaction was a reward in itself. Seeing him this distraught when he was normally so composed left her grinning wide.

But ah, she couldn't stop now. She couldn't be satisfied with only this, even if it was highly amusing.

The Sableye shot the Chandelure a devious smirk, and then yanked him down. She felt him resist her pull, but it was futile; Ker dragged him into the sea all the same.

Gallows writhed and clawed at the air when he was mere inches above the surface. His flames billowed and crackled violently, even turning insidious shades of blue as he struggled. Surely, if those flames touched Ker, they'd reduce her very soul into nothingness. And yet, the threatening display only filled Ker with a euphoric rush that manifested as a hysterical laugh. It gave her that last bit of strength she needed to submerge the hapless and flailing ghost.

The water swallowed up Gallows without hesitation. Ker felt him freeze, now petrified in horrid anticipation. Very soon his flames would be snuffed out. Very soon his very life-force would cease to be, rendering him into oblivion. Or, at the very least, agonizing pain would shoot through his form and his tortured screams would reverberate across the ocean.

At least, she knew that was what Gallows _anticipated_.

In actuality, Gallows's flames still burned. Though clearly surrounded by water, the flames hadn't shrunk in the slightest. They only offered a fuzzy sphere of blue illumination for the both of them. It didn't take Gallows long to realize this, and when he did, he stared at himself so strangely, as though he had suddenly found himself in a new form. Not a single hint of his typical conceit and deviousness self seemed present in the Chandelure before Ker. He very much seemed like the meek self he had pretended to be when the two had first met. But this time, Ker knew it wasn't a façade. No, she could tell that he was genuinely at a loss. She knew, because she could taste his irresistible dread drifting all around her.

She wasted no time taking it in. The corners of her mouth curled up as the dread seeped into her, thick as honey and just as sweet. She could barely keep her focus on the delectable Chandelure as a giddy dizziness came over her and melted him into warm, otherworldly colors.

So this was why Gallows always wanted her dread. Nothing, not a single thing in all of existence, could ever compare to the utter ecstasy that was taking in Gallows's fear. Mortal dread was sweet enough on its own, but Gallows's dread… _oh_. Oh, after tasting his delicious fright, Ker feared that she would never be able to devour mortal emotions again. They were utterly tasteless compared to Gallows's fear. They lacked the sudden surge, the buzzing that made her soul burn brighter than the sun.

It was an ethereal sensation completely out of this world, as though she had died right there, but then revived not even a moment later.

"Ahahahahah. _Ahhhhh_. Oh, so this is what it feels like," Ker giggled.

Any semblance of weakness disappeared from Gallows's expression, though certain cautiousness remained in his eyes.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Some of the blissful haze in Ker's mind cleared, just barely enough for her to see straight again. She let out another little giggle as she sent Gallows a sinister grin.

"Oh what, you really thought I was going to drag you down here if you could actually get hurt?" Ker asked smugly. "I'm not _that_ evil."

Gallows chuckled to himself as his flames returned to a pleasant, violet shade. The pleasure washing over Ker vanished not long after that agreeable color manifested, but she found she didn't mind much. Sure, the taste had been all that she had hoped for, but having Gallows look at her like this was still quite satisfying.

"Ah hah. Ah, I see now, Ker," Gallows purred. "Though I understand many of the implications of being a ghost, I must admit I thought I had kept some flaws of my mortal form, as would you. I hadn't anticipated that you could move as freely through the ocean as you could anywhere else. After all, for all of your ghostly abilities, you still wander about the mortal realms as a mortal Sableye would. You certainly dance like one."

"Well sure, I can't float like you can, but I can do pretty much everything else you can do," Ker explained. "You and me are special as ghosts, you know. We don't have bodies anymore. We just _look_ like Pokémon, but when in reality, we're just souls that can't really be hurt by anything stupid like water or fire or whatever. We're like… borderline invincible."

"So we are."

The Chandelure was wordless for a moment before a sly glint crackled in his eyes.

"So, how did it feel, being able to frighten me for the first time?" he asked coquettishly. "I'm sure it must have been quite the experience for you, to frighten another ghost like yourself."

"It was like the most amazing thing ever," Ker said dreamily. "I mean, there were some other ghosts that I've managed to scare, but your fear was way better than theirs. Yours was way more delicious and sweet."

"And what if I told you that I wasn't very frightened at all? What would you say if I told you that while I was quite anxious as to what would happen should I fall beneath the water's surface, I didn't dread it as a mortal does when death stares at them in the face? What would you say then?"

"I'd say that you're a liar, because I totally saw you panicking and desperately trying to get away from me."

"Oh, but what if it was all simply an act, Ker? What if it was only to humor you, to allow you a moment to be the mastermind of our game?"

Ker glared at Gallows, searching for anything that might hint that he was bluffing. She searched for a flicker in his flames, a crack in his conceited expression. However, all she could find was bottomless vanity utterly delighting in her baffled thoughts.

Gallows made an odd clucking noise as he closed the distance between the two of them. He embraced Ker, something that she welcomed eagerly.

"You're absolutely adorable in your stupor," Gallows cooed. "It's almost as endearing as when you're fumbling over your own words."

"Sh-Sh-Shut up," Ker growled before she grinned a little. "I still got you either way. You really were scared. I finally got you after all this time."

"Yes, but you still have yet to truly terrify me. So enjoy this little victory while you can Ker; it won't be so easy to frighten me next time."

"Oh, I am. I am."

She wasn't lying. She could still taste the faintest bits of dread seeping out of Gallows's form now that she rested against him. She savored these lingering remnants of his dread, lapping them up quietly. They didn't provide her the same kick that they had before, but they still sent warm shudders through her being. She honestly felt she could fall asleep as she took in the fading emotion. She imagined that Gallows could hold her in his tender hug as she slept soundly, lulled into slumber by his melodious voice and the muffled sounds of the sweeping ocean.

Except… she couldn't. Ghosts couldn't sleep, and she knew that. So then why? Why did she want that when sleep was nothing more than a mortal nuisance?

"So, were those mortals from before a bother to you?"

Ker snapped out of her daze to find she still had her forehead pressed against Gallows. It took her a moment to decipher the foreign words in her head that she knew to be her thoughts.

"Oh, well kind of," Ker grumbled. "They tried to make me go with them somewhere and kept rambling on about some stupid, crazy stuff. To be honest, they were complete weirdos."

"Is that so?" Gallows asked with a hearty chuckle. "What could they have possibly said that would make you think this? Considering the morbid and insensitive remarks you make on a frequent basis, I honestly didn't think that anything could offend you."

" _Well_ , if you must know, they said that they were some being called Keeper of Realms before it split itself into them. And then they started saying _I_ was also a split soul and needed to go with them. Tssssk, I wonder what could have possibly messed up their heads like that."

"Perhaps it was the work of a trickster god from their dimension. In my dimension, we had stories of a certain god that plays games on mortals out of sheer boredom. His name was Hoopa, always seducing mortals into accepting his tempting offers before slowly ruining their lives through such offers. He found no greater joy than to listen to the anguished wails of his victims, begging to be set free of their torment."

"Oh yeah, I think I've heard of him. Well, one version of him. I'm sure every dimension's Hoopa is different. I bet at least one version is even a nice guy, actually granting wishes out of wanting to be a good Pokémon."

"Hah, a charitable Hoopa! It's almost too comical to imagine. If you had lived in my dimension and said that to anyone, they would have slandered you as a Hoopa cultist. Trust me when I say that you don't want to have that title latched onto your name."

"Well it's not like they would have been able to do anything about it. They can't hurt me, no matter how much they want to. Maybe I'll even go to your dimension and say I'm a cultist just to see what they would try to do to me."

"Hmmhmm, well it could potentially be an amusing spectacle. But regardless of that, you have my sympathy for having to be in the presence of those delusional mortals. I had my suspicions that they would be a nuisance, but I didn't realize that their plans involved swaying you into their group. Had I known what those three actually wanted, I would have forced them to leave you alone, most likely by threatening to burn away their souls if they didn't depart immediately."

"Aww, thanks. I'm just glad I was able to get away from them and be with you again. Felt wrong not being with you."

Ker blushed a little after she said that. Ah, she still wasn't used to being heartfelt. Sure, it was ridiculously easy to spew out her demented thoughts that almost no one wanted to hear, but to actually be just a little sincere…

Gallows laughed to himself as he pulled away from Ker. Ker almost wanted to grab onto him and keep him close, but stopped herself. She would look clingy if she did that. She had already acted insecure enough; she couldn't push it. Gallows had to have a certain tolerance level for these sort of things, and she honestly didn't want to put him off because she couldn't keep her impulses under control. She needed him as much as the mortals needed water.

And yet, the thought of pulling him back for another embrace was just so inviting. She could feel her claws twitching, ready to snatch that Chandelure at a moment's notice and hold him tight.

"So umm, I just realized something," Ker said suddenly, desperate to shoo away the urges.

"And what might that be?" Gallows asked earnestly.

Alright, what did she want to ask? What could she possibly say that wouldn't make her look like an idiot? Hmm, what had they just talked about? Well, they had discussed her unfortunate encounter with those bothersome mortals. There was nothing more to say about that. There was also what Gallows's dimension's version of Hoopa did to the mortals in his spare time. There wasn't much more to discuss about that either, unless she wanted to ask if he had ever met Hoopa or knew someone that had been tricked by the conniving god.

It was then that Ker realized there actually was something the two could talk about. It honestly surprised Ker when the revelation hit. Despite all of the time she had spent with Gallows, she had never once considered initiating the topic now formulating in her mind. She almost felt ashamed, never having this thought even once cross her mind before. Now the more she thought about it, the more she needed to speak it and make it a reality. It very much felt like a cancerous growth invading all of her mind space.

"Uhhh… you know, I just realized I never really asked you anything about your mortal life," Ker said as she played with her claws. "I mean, we've known each other for a while, but we've never actually talked about ourselves that much, have we?"

"Hmmm, no, I'm afraid we haven't," Gallows realized. "Most of our conversations revolve around the game and how to play it."

"Yeah. So I was thinking… maybe you could tell me a little about yourself? I mean, I like you and traumatizing mortals with you, but I'd like to… uhhh, understand you… if that makes sense."

"So you mean to say that you want to be closer friends?"

"Oh please, we're more than just friends and you know it," Ker scoffed with a lewd smirk. "I see the way you look at me when you're eating my fear. I really doubt _friends_ look at their other _friends_ that way. Well, unless they're one of _those_ kinds of friends…"

"You know what I mean, Ker," Gallows stated, unfazed by her remark.

Ker immediately dropped her grin as the sinking feeling in her stomach returned.

"Yeah, I do," Ker admitted with a defeated groan. "And yeah, I want to get closer. Because you know, I'm kind of curious to know how you got so smart and crafty. I mean, I am cool with just having things the way they are right now if you want, but I think it'd be nice to make you less of a giant mystery. Because that's essentially what you are, you know. You're like steeped in this bottomless darkness that I can't navigate through."

And it was true. Ker didn't know a single thing about Gallows besides the fact that his name used to be Ignis and was a master of deception. The more and more Ker thought about this, the more she realized how strange it was to spend all of her time with someone she knew barely anything about. Admittedly she had done this with Bell, Adam, and Zel, but they had never been particularly interesting enough for her to want to understand them. But Gallows, he was a fascinating ghost, most certainly.

She genuinely hoped that Gallows didn't find the request strange. While their entire… _bond_ was already quite peculiar and lacked any true label, she hoped more familiarity didn't taint their relationship. Closeness had the uncanny ability to either greatly enhance or outright destroy pre-existing connections.

"I suppose there's no harm in sharing intimate information with you," Gallows said dismissively after a while. "You'll have to pardon me however, if I'm rather vague at times. I hardly share personal information with anyone."

Ker smiled. Ah, perfect. Now she only needed to think of questions to ask.

"Okay. Well, what were you like when you were mortal?" Ker asked. "Like, what did you do?"

"As a mortal, I was the eldest of three children, all boys," Gallows began, his voice ringing with fond nostalgia. "Nameless and Umbra were the names of my brothers. I never spent much time with them however, and the same could be said regarding my parents. Oh, they were all agreeable Pokémon and there was hardly any qualm between the five of us, but I often spent my days outside of my home. While out and about, I would study pedestrians from hidden places. You see, though we all enjoy believing that we are all different from one another, all mortals actually share many similar traits. Particularly, their behaviors and cognitions are quite similar regardless of who they are and their background. I can't remember how I came to this conclusion, it's been some time, but when I did, I gained a fascination with the mind. The mind holds such deep complexities, yet it is also so predictable and malleable under the right circumstances."

"And then you used that knowledge to mess around with everyone," Ker stated bluntly.

"Yes, I did. Very much," Gallows said with an unsettling chuckle. "Oh, I knew I could have taken many paths after I learned of the beauty of the mind. I could have been like many psychics and followed them into their sophisticated field, dissecting the mind in an attempt to find the answers to life's greatest questions."

"So then why didn't you?"

"Because there is no purpose in finding these answers. No matter how much mortals progress, in the end, their existence is nothing more than a fleeting moment in the infinities of time and a minuscule speck amongst the vast multiverse. On any given day, an entire dimension's population will fade away into oblivion, to become nothing more than the fleeing shadows of a new dawn. No matter what how far they advance, a day will come where they will simply disappear, and the multiverse will not remember them."

Ker didn't know how she wanted to respond to that. It lined up with her own philosophy regarding mortal existence, though the thought that Gallows had known all of this as a mortal sent shivers down her back. She couldn't imagine living her life, knowing that nothing she did mattered in the grand scheme of everything.

"Thus, I decided that rather than waste my days away fruitlessly chasing after a purpose that means nothing, I'd spend my mortal days as how I saw fit," Gallows went on, indifferent to the nihilistic information. "Because after all, if my existence had no lasting impact, then there was no reason to abide by the flimsy rules created through a myriad of perceived realities. Why should I conform to the endlessly tainted views of existence when I can see existence for what it truly is? There was no sensible reason.

"And so, with these thoughts, I devised the game. A game where, through manipulation of mortals' most valuable tool, their minds, you temporarily destroyed their fabricated reality and offered them a glimpse of true reality in its raw, apathetic form."

"But I thought the game was just to make others scared," Ker said pointedly.

"Oh well yes, it does. But the reason the victims are consumed with dread, little wraith, is because you force them to realize their view of reality is fake. You, who wear a mask and become that which you're not, enter their comfortable lie of a reality and abide by their rules. You make them comfortable, make them feel at ease as you become a part of their reality. Then-"

"Then… when everything feels right and they totally trust you," Ker cut in, realizing where this was going, "you rip off the mask and reveal that you're not who they think you are. You make them realize everything they believed about you was an elaborate lie. And then… their reality falls apart from the shock of it all, and they're forced to see the actual, uncaring reality that wouldn't even notice if they just died right there."

"Precisely," Gallows purred. "Seems you truly do understand the game after all."

Ker grinned. Ah, it felt so good to hear him say that. Praising her intellect didn't fluster her in the slightest. After all, she already knew she was a smart Sableye. Hearing someone reaffirm that only made her heart swell with pride.

"Now then, is there anything else you would like to know about me?" Gallows then asked.

"Uhhh, yeah, I think there is," Ker said. "How exactly did you find out about us ghosts? When you were playing the game with me and trying to spook me, you made it sound like you already knew a lot about my kind."

"Well as a ghost-type, it wasn't exactly that difficult to figure out. Your kind even thought I was one of them until they noted how my emotions tasted."

"Oh, so you really were a Chandelure as a mortal. You really weren't lying when we first met. I thought you were some Infernape or Ninetales. Then again, you seemed pretty comfortable with your form when Grim brought you over to my dimension… most new ghosts scream for a while. It's honestly half the fun of the welcoming ceremonies. Well at least to me it is."

"Hmmm, interesting. I didn't realize that so many of the ghosts were not ghost-types originally."

Gallows took a moment to look over Ker.

"Were you always a Sableye?" he asked.

"Well… probably?" Ker replied with a reluctant chuckle.

"Probably? What sort of answer is that?"

Ker smiled awkwardly. She hadn't expected this subject to ever come up in their conversations. It certainly never occurred in any of her other conversations for as long as she existed. It seemed taboo to discuss even though it never actually bothered Ker. However, she saw no harm in sharing the truth with Gallows. It was only fair to share personal information of her own.

"I actually don't remember anything about mortal life," Ker confessed bashfully. "I only remember my life as a ghost. The oldest memory I have is just me laying in the spectral realm with this uhhhh… giant black thing hovering over me."

"Black thing?" Gallows asked.

"Yeah, I never really saw its face. But, I'm pretty sure it was Grim. Kind of sounded like him too since I remember the voice whispering things to me. Kept saying 'Ker, your name is Ker. Your name is Ker. Such a perfect name it is, Ker', or something like that."

"And the fact that you cannot remember any aspect of your mortal life doesn't bother you in the slightest?"

"Well, not really? I mean, I guess I should be kind of bothered, but I'm not. I don't really care who I used to be as a mortal, and I'm pretty sure no one misses me. Besides, I'd just get super depressed if I let this whole thing bother me, and I don't want to waste an eternity being a mopey ghost."

"Fair enough. I imagine you haven't changed much as a ghost, however. I undoubtedly believe you were always a demented little Sableye."

"Well of course! I really doubt something like _ripping out my soul_ would change me much. I bet I even begged Grim to make me a ghost because I was so bored of mortal life. Like you! Because that's totally what you did, isn't it?"

"Possibly."

"Oh come on, you can give me a better answer than that."

Gallows chuckled, but he wouldn't elaborate any further. Typical Gallows. Even when he agreed to be open with Ker, he still kept some air of mystery about him. It was almost infuriating. But then again, Ker had known what she had gotten herself into when she agreed to let Gallows stay in her company. He would always remain enigmatic in some shape or form, no matter how much time she spent with him.

Ker saw Gallows's gaze wander to the ocean floor. Ker followed his eyes to see a large cluster of kelp wads emerge from the murky sea depths. They seamlessly blended into the darkness with their sickly brown skin, only noticeable thanks to multiple crimson lights illuminating ominously from their pulpy bodies.

The two watched as the ocean current brought the plants closer and closer to them. Now Ker could see more details about the lifeless plants, like dull shades of purple running down the sides of the stalks and pink, crown-like leaves sprouting at the top of each tangle.

But most of all, she saw something oozing from a single protruding leaf of each of the kelp. Something smoky and dark like Octillery ink, but far thicker.

Then it finally hit Ker what was actually happening.

"Oh… you guys aren't kelp," Ker realized. "You're Dragalge. Oops. Forgot you guys are why nobody ever goes into this ocean."

All of the Dragalge sprayed Ker and Gallows at once with their poison, dousing them in the toxic murk. However, Ker didn't fret. Though the venom pooled around her and clouded her vision, it had no effect on her. She could barely even feel the acid against her violet form, likening it to a light breeze blowing past her.

When the poisonous cloud dissipated, Ker still found the Dragalge circling her and Gallows, watching them with their cruel eyes. As soon as the kelpy creatures realized that the two ghosts were unharmed, however, they wasted no time in retreating back into the shadowy depths below. For such monstrous beasts of the ocean, they sure fled awfully quickly.

Ker couldn't stop herself from laughing.

"You know, this is something I really like about the ocean, especially at night," Ker said with grin. "There are so many things in the ocean that defy everything mortals understand. The mortals that live in the ocean look totally alien compared to all of the mortals living up on the surface. You'd get nightmares from just taking one look at the things here. But worst of all, you'd never even know you were their next meal until it was too late. You'd just be bobbing on the surface, and then something will grab your leg and drag you down to your doom. You'd scream and cry for help as your life slowly slips away, but it would just be silent air bubbles coming out of your mouth…"

Gallows's eyes lit up as he made an odd trilling sound. He swooned as his flames flickered and danced enthusiastically. Ker didn't think she had ever seen Gallows this elated before. He had always seemed content whenever he spooked Ker, but now he seemed genuinely cheerful.

" _Ahhhh_ , that was absolutely beautiful _. All of it._ I had my doubts, considering no one I've ever encountered revels in the ghastly aspects of reality, but you've alleviated all of them. Dear Ker, you're proving to be everything I hoped you would be and more. Truly, you are the one I always knew existed somewhere throughout the infinities."

Gallows laughed giddily. Ker joined him, though not without some hesitance. Something wasn't right about his eyes. There was something glimmering in those yellow circles of his, something underneath the jovially morbid mask he always wore. Something volatile.

"I like to watch you release your demons," Gallows then said, his voice taking on a sultry tone. "Oh yes… your darkness… your beautifully twisted darkness that lusts for chaos..."

A carnal longing crept into his expression. Ker shivered a little, but she couldn't tell if it was out of anticipation or apprehension.

"Oh Ker…" Gallows went on, eyeing her hungrily. "Where were you all this time? Where were you when I first came to be in the nothingness of existence? _I've been searching for you for an eternity._ "

In a flash, Gallows ensnared Ker in his tendrils, holding her tight against his form. He shoved her hard against his face as his flames ate away at her form. They burned her soul with a frightening intensity, as if trying to devour her completely. Ker yelped and struggled, but Gallows's grip proved relentless.

"Owww, Gallows!" Ker hissed as she pressed her claws against his eyes. "Quit it!"

The Chandelure suddenly stopped. He released his hold around Ker and pushed her away from him. Ker moaned as she checked over herself. A number of wisps streamed from her form, making her resemble a living flame. Ker didn't find the sight particularly alarming, but a dull ache still radiated over her entire being.

"I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to harm you."

Ker looked back at Gallows to find that he still kept his distance from her. She could see his flames trembling as he shot her a pained expression. Ker gave him a soft stare as she drifted toward him.

"Hey, it's alright. It was an accident, right?" Ker said gently. "I know you would never hurt me on purpose. Or at least, not like that."

"Of course," Gallows assured weakly. "I merely… I only wanted to show how much I cherish you, but it seems I took it too far."

"Well don't worry about it. It's not a big deal, really. Let's just forget it ever happened."

Ker shot him a devious grin.

"Besides, there was something kind of nice about the pain," Ker said teasingly. "Like something salty in the sweet words you said to me."

"Oh, you might not want to tell me that," Gallows chuckled awkwardly. "I just might repeat my actions."

"Maybe I _want_ you to."

Gallows's classic conceited expression returned in an instant. Ker's heart leapt with joy as she closed the distance between them and hugged him the best she could. He returned the embrace and ran the end of his tendrils along the back of her horns. Ker's appearance returned to normal as the two held each other close.

"Well either way, thanks for telling me about your life," Ker said with a beaming smile. "It was nice to know more about you. You really are a fascinating Chandelure."

"Thanks," Gallows replied smoothly. "I'm glad we had this conversation. It felt oddly satisfying."

"Think you can tell me more about yourself?"

"Of course. I'll tell you anything that you would like to know, dear Ker. Ask me anything your heart yearns for, and I'll whisper the answer into your very soul."

A tongue of flame brushed against Ker's neck, sending waves of pleasure rippling across her form. Ker eagerly pulled Gallows closer, relishing his everything as his fire licked her and worked its clever magic. She couldn't stop herself from writhing and moaning as a hazy bliss consumed her.

And yet, even in her salacious rapture, Ker could still taste the subtlest hint of dread seeping out of Gallows.


	14. Your Way Out

Glace had always liked the woods for as long as she could remember. Though her clan had preferred to settle amongst the mountains during the travels, there were times when they stayed in the thick forests of the region. She had always liked all of the colors of the plants and Pokémon that lived there. In the mountains, there were always dull shades of brown, green, and grey. But in the woods, entire spectrums of colors filled her sight. Blue berries grew from bushes, pink flowers sprouted at Glace's knees, emerald and yellow leaves hung from the branches of mahogany trees, and the brown furs of ferals rushed in and out of her vision.

Everything felt far more _alive_ in forests. Although the mountains had always seemed desolate and unwelcoming, which Glace did appreciate at times, it refused to spark any semblance of emotion from her. She always felt there was far more to be found in the woods, as though they were a grand adventure beckoning to her.

That was why, when Glace emerged from her portal and found herself in a forest, her rapid heartbeat finally slowed. It was a strange forest, certainly. All of the colors were far darker than she had seen in her dimension. The bark of the trees seemed to be almost black even though the sun had reached its highest point in the sky. No flowers grew upon the forest floor, only dull blades of grass. A thin, violet fog shrouded the forest. She even thought she saw a few orbs of light blinking into the distance. But it was a forest all the same, the perfect haven she needed.

The Weavile made her way through the forest, caring not what lay ahead. After all, did it matter where she went if she didn't know where she wanted to go? She lightly traced her claws along the trees as she strolled along. She noted that they felt cool and smooth like stones. She didn't find it surprising; some dimensions must have had trees that felt like this. If anything, they gave her a sense of comfort.

The further she went into the woods, the darker it seemed to grow. The canopy wasn't growing any thicker, and yet less sunlight poured down upon her. But despite this, not a single shiver went through her body. She only continued forward, caring not how much darker it could possibly get. The deepest part of the woods could be as dark as a cave and she wouldn't stop walking.

 _Glace… please. Talk to me._

The Weavile ignored Sonata's voice. She knew that if she stayed quiet long enough, the Noivern would leave her alone.

 _Look, I got what happened was probably really scary to you. It'd freak me out too if I thought I was someone else for a while!_

Glace wondered just how far this forest went on. She didn't see an end to it in any direction, just endless trees towering far above her. She considered that maybe this entire dimension was a massive forest. Jera's dimension had been mostly underwater from what she could gather.

 _Glace, where are you going? Why are we here?_

The Weavile came across a small creek in her path. Algae that emitted an ethereal green light clung to the rocks at the bottom of the stream. She reached into the water and grabbed a handful of the strange growth. It felt slimy and she could have sworn she felt it move in her claws, but she only grasped it tighter. Perhaps it would come in handy. It still radiated just as bright as she removed it from the creek, flickering like a tiny flame. It didn't offer much light, but it at least chased away the darkness lingering in front of her face. With her new source of light, she leapt over the brook and continued on her way.

 _I know you can hear me…_

Glace found it odd how her night vision didn't work in this forest. In all of the other dimensions, she could see through the darkness just fine. And yet in this one, the darkness obscured her vision just as it did with any other Pokémon type.

 _Please… just say something… anything…_

Maybe her abilities didn't work in this dimension. She didn't understand why that could be, as she always saw darkness as a stubborn, unchanging element of reality, but then she remembered that nothing about her circumstances had any semblance of sense. Everything she thought she knew about reality was nothing more than a lie that made her own perception of the world comfortable.

At least, that's what Giratina said. She still didn't know if she liked what he said. It made her feel powerless to the whims of life, like she was nothing more than a meaningless speck within the infinities.

The Weavile expected Sonata to make a comment, but she didn't. Glace could still feel the Noivern lingering, but she kept the silence between them.

Many hours passed and Sonata's presence disappeared altogether. She had finally joined Yore, wherever he had gone. Glace couldn't feel him either. But then again, she didn't _want_ to feel either of them.

Glace breathed deeply as she finally took a moment to sit upon a fallen log off to the side of her path. She felt something moist and slick press up against her as she settled upon the tree. She shuddered at the touch. It felt just like moss, except that she could see there was nothing growing on her seat. It was nothing more than a rotting tree with a few red mushrooms growing along it.

She glanced around and saw that she still could not find anything resembling an exit from the forest. All she could tell was that the purple haze had grown thicker. Breathing it didn't seem to cause her any problems, but she still couldn't help but wonder why it seemed to be more like smoke than thin fog like before. Perhaps there was something that was making this fog deep in this forest. She didn't know if she wanted to find what was making the haze if that was the case. A creature she didn't want to meet could have been the center of it all. Maybe it was the very reason why she hadn't seen a single creature in the woods.

She wouldn't be able to stay in these woods if there wasn't anything to eat then. She would have to find another dimension if that was the case.

"So you really are running away. How typical."

Glace drew her claws and snapped her gaze to the voice. Sitting there only a few feet away was a Weavile just like her, only male. He sat there with a devious smile. The corners of his mouth went too far past the edges of his face and curled toward the back of his head.

"I expected better of you, Glace," the Weavile said with a sneer.

"Who… Who are you?" Glace asked as she forced a threatening growl into her voice.

The male chuckled as his eyes glimmered.

"The narrator of your story," he answered insidiously.

Glace finally recognized the chilling, yet oddly enticing tone of the male's voice. Even though she didn't want to believe what she was thinking, she knew exactly who was with her. She slid further away from him. The stranger didn't move, only watching her with the same amusement he had before.

"Oh yes, I don't have to remain inside of you," the Weavile said. "I can stay in your mind if I want, or I can manifest myself into your reality through a different mask. I'm not limited to remaining in one place at a time."

 _ **But don't worry, Glace. I mean you no harm. I only manifest myself in your reality to help you in your current predicament.**_

Glace cupped her claws over her ears as Giratina's voice violated the silence of her mind. She quickly got up and hurried away from the Weavile. She didn't know where she could run to, but it was better than where she was now. She rushed deeper into the woods, further into the darkness that was her only salvation from the abomination.

Or she could open up a portal to another dimension. There was no reason she had to stay in this eerie forest any longer. There were undoubtedly less ominous woods in other dimensions.

"That's right, try to escape from this reality by fleeing to another. Be just like all mortals. It won't let you escape from the true reality of your situation."

Something grabbed Glace by her wrist. The sudden inertia in the midst of her run sent Glace tumbling forward, but she didn't fall onto her face. Whoever held her yanked her back, pulling her back onto her feet.

It didn't surprise Glace to see that her captor was Giratina in his Weavile form. He still wore that awful grin as he clutched her with frightening strength. No matter how much Glace wriggled her arm, she couldn't free herself from his grip.

"Let me go," Glace growled as she continued to struggle.

"Then stop running," he returned snidely. "Stop fleeing from the truth of your reality like a mortal. Face it with dignity and strength."

"I'm not doing this anymore," Glace shot back. "I'm not going to lose myself while I go look for the others. I'm not going to forget who I was as I keep absorbing other Pokémon."

"Oh, but where would you go?" Giratina asked in a mocking tone. "There is nowhere for you to run to. Everywhere you go, Sonata and Yore will follow you. _**I**_ will follow you."

Glace knew she didn't have an answer for that. She knew deep down that there was nowhere to hide from her other selves. It was already a miracle that they were offering her peace of mind at the moment. But she didn't want to give any satisfaction to the abomination.

"I'll find somewhere," Glace insisted. "You'll see."

"The only possible way you can ever escape from your other selves is if you somehow rip them out of your mind," Giratina stated. "And even then… only I can do that. But you already knew that."

The male's smile widened as he tightened his hold around Glace's wrist.

"And I'm not going to split you apart again, no matter how much you beg me," he added. "No, I'm afraid I can't do that. The state of the multiverse depends upon all of you fragments merging back together."

Glace finally stopped fighting. Her wrist was growing sore and she was running out of energy to keep struggling. She wanted to claw at the male's face, but realized it was pointless. He may have looked like a Weavile, but he was still a god. He probably wouldn't even feel a thing if she dared to attack him.

The Weavile refused to look at Giratina in the eye, but she knew he was still smiling at her. She stared at her feet in the soft glow of the algae she still carried.

"No one ever said that this was supposed to happen," Glace muttered. "Sonata never said that I would actually start becoming the others."

"I don't know why you didn't expect that this would happen," Giratina said impassively. "You were told to assimilate all of the Yog-Sothoth fragments. You knew that all of you would eventually become one being at one point. You should have realized that the merging of minds was a process, not something instantaneous."

Glace frowned, but didn't say anything. She had been stupid to not consider that. She should have realized from the very start that she would slowly lose herself with each fragment she assimilated.

It was then that the god released his grip around Glace's wrist. She glanced over at him to find that he was no longer wearing his sinister grin. He was now frowning, his expression somewhere between disappointed and contemplative.

"I should have expected as much. Your perspective is limited compared to mine," Giratina grumbled.

However, for once his voice wasn't condescending. It seemed pitiful to Glace, as if finally realizing how she could have been so blind to the circumstances. It was an unnatural tone that nearly made Glace gawk.

"What do you intend to do if you somehow silence Yore and Sonata?" the male asked.

"Live out the rest of my days in peace," Glace answered honestly. "Pretend that I was never involved in all this insanity in the first place."

"And what of the multiverse?" he then asked. "The multiverse will destroy itself if you don't join with the others. You will live to see every living creature in all the infinities perish, all because of your inability to act."

"Maybe the multiverse won't actually fall apart," Glace considered quietly. "Maybe this is all a misunderstanding."

"Ketetetet, wouldn't that be convenient for you," he said with a purr. "Unfortunately, it's not. I can promise you that if you and the other spawn don't merge back into Yog-Sothoth, all of the realities will fall apart, and not a single soul will remain in all the infinities. Only I will exist. Azathoth as well, I suppose."

"Well, you could be lying to me," Glace said with a frown.

"Oh, but have I told you a single lie in the entire time that you've known me?" Giratina chuckled.

Glace sighed. No, he hadn't. He hadn't even harmed her. He had only offered his aid and guidance in her journey. _Insidious_ help, certainly, but still help.

"You can run away from all of this, if you truly want to," the male then said, snapping Glace out of her stupor. "I won't stop you."

"You wouldn't…?" Glace asked. "But I thought you said that our whole self asked you to make sure we all merged back together."

The godly being smiled to himself as he made his way over to a nearby tree. Glace watched as he carved his claws into the wood. Somehow, despite them seemingly being made of stone, he etched a series of interlocking circles. It was the same sketch he had created when explaining how all the dimensions were linked.

"I did, yes," he admitted. "I intend to have Yog-Sothoth's plan succeed. However, I don't need you to find the others in order for that to happen."

"How?" Glace asked cautiously. "How are you going to do that when I'm the one who's getting everyone?"

The god giggled insidiously. He glanced back at Glace with a knowing glimmer in his eyes.

"No one said that you were the only one searching for the spawn," he answered.

He scratched a star into two of the circles with loud scrapes. Glace flinched as the harsh sound penetrated her ears and sent shivers up her spine.

"You already told me that you sent one spawn out into other realities to find the others," Giratina stated as he pointed to one of the stars. "If you cease your efforts, that one spawn will still be searching. She will take your place and finish what you started. She will find all the other spawn that you have yet to collect. One of my masks will eventually find her and assist her as well."

He lowered his claw, chuckling to himself as he did so.

"You can remain in another dimension if you want," he went on. "You can live peacefully without ever being expected to find the other spawn. However, you will be assimilated in the end. I'll allow you to be the last spawn that is ever found, giving you perhaps a few years of the peace you crave, but you will become Yog-Sothoth once again. That is a fate you cannot escape from."

"You wouldn't let me do that," Glace said pointedly.

"Oh, but I would," Giratina assured. "I make a valid offer to you. You will be the very last spawn to be assimilated. Depending upon which dimension you reside in, you can very well live a hundred more years before you see me again."

"You're not worried about me dying?" Glace asked with a dark glare. "What happens if I die before someone else comes to get me? Your whole plan is ruined."

Giratina snickered as his unsettling smile returned. He shook his head as he made his way back to Glace. Glace thought about running away again, but realized it was pointless. The god could follow her anywhere she went and overpower her so easily. She kept still as he stopped in front of her and looked into her eyes with that awful grin.

Then, he extended a claw to her. Glace stared at it warily as she drew her own claws away from him. She worried that if she touched his hand, spikes would emerge from the palm and impale her skin.

"Take my hand, Glace," he told her in a suave, soothing voice. "I want to show you something."

"What do you want to show me?" she asked cautiously.

"A surprise," he said, still not losing his pacifying tone. "I won't hurt you, I promise. Go on, take my hand."

And though Glace didn't want to, she did. She placed her hand in his and he gripped her tight. With his free hand, Giratina ripped open a new dimensional tear before the two of them. The ethereal colors of the multiverse leaked into the dreary forest, casting the two in its sublime and alien beauty. However, the light especially seemed to wrap around Giratina. It clung to him eagerly and distorted his image, making it seem that his entire body was covered in hundreds of mouths.

Glace trembled. She told herself that it was nothing more than a trick of the multiverse's enigmatic energy.

"Come along," Giratina said. "I think you'll quite like this."

He stepped into the rip, disappearing into another dimension. And though Glace feared for what was on the other side of the vortex, there was nothing she could do but let Giratina pull her in right behind him.

* * *

On the other side of the portal, Glace found herself surrounded by blinding light. Glace squinted her eyes as the sudden whiplash from dark to light bombarded her. She thought she heard Giratina laughing at her reaction, but she couldn't be sure. She couldn't see him in the white and red blurs that were now her reality.

But eventually, her eyes did adjust, and Glace realized she was atop a mountain. Just like the mountains of her youth, this one was various shades of dull grey and brown. Granted, there were a few shrubs springing up between the rocks, but they might as well have been seedlings compared to the monumental trees of the forest she had left behind.

Glace could see a small town settled at the base of the mountain. She couldn't make out the details too well from where she stood, but she couldn't help but feel that the town looked familiar. There was something in the way that all of the buildings were arranged, particularly all of the cottages sectioned to a single part of the town, and how they were all identical.

Giratina closed up the dimensional tear with a wave of his claw, and then gestured to the humble settlement.

"I wonder where you think we are," Giratina wondered aloud.

"On a mountain overlooking a town," Glace answered with a dismissive shrug.

"Ketetet, typical obvious answer. You don't recognize where we are?"

Glace shook her head. Giratina snickered as he released her from his hold. He shot her a smug grin before looking back at the town.

"This is where you used to live before Sonata found you," he proclaimed. "I believe it was called Granite Town according to your memories."

Glace was speechless. Now that she thought about it, that would explain why the town had an air of familiarity to it, even from so far away.

"Actually, that's not entirely accurate," Giratina then said. "The town you see before you is a version of Granite Town in another reality. Some dimensions are nearly identical to one another with miniscule differences, such as one lacking a certain continent or a particular war having never occurred. In this reality, you never existed. There are no Weavile clans. There are no Pokémon that wander down the mountain and roam about the streets during the night. Therefore, those tiny differences make this dimension very… optimal for you."

"What do you mean?" Glace asked warily.

"Ah, making me spell it out exactly," Giratina said with a mocking smile as he shook his head. "What I'm telling you is that you can live in this reality, if you would so choose to, until it is time for you to be assimilated. It is the one reality you would be most comfortable with, all because it is so similar to the reality you resided in for all your life."

"You mean you're actually showing me somewhere I can stay? You're not going to sway me to be keep looking for the others at all?"

Giratina chuckled before he grabbed Glace by the wrist. Then, he made his way down the mountain, dragging Glace with him. Like before, she didn't bother to resist his pull. She only followed him down the rocky terrain, careful to watch her footing. Even though she had a god with her, that didn't make her immune to accidentally stepping on a sharp rock.

A few minutes later, Giratina brought Glace to the base of the mountain and deep into the town. Just like Giratina had said, the village looked exactly like Granite Town. She saw the quaint Sumptuous Plaza where all the merchants gathered to sell their goods and wares, the humble Arceus Shrine settled near the town pond where you could pray and provide offerings to the great creator, and the brick school where all of the yearlings went until they reached the age of ten. Glace even saw the old dojo in the distance, still just as rugged as ever with its ripped banners streaming through the air in the light breeze.

Eventually, Giratina took her to the one place that she recognized most; the residential part of the settlement. Just as with her original dimension, every single home was nothing more than a simple cottage identical to all the ones surrounding it. However, there was something different about the homes here than in her dimension. All of the cottages were made out of stone instead of wood. The door was still carved from wood, and the roof was still formed from ceramic tiles, but the exterior was now a mesh of grey and brown stones.

This one, tiny detail was all that it took for Glace to realize she was truly in a different dimension, something different than her original home. From how bleached each of the stones were, Glace imagined that these homes had been built a long time ago.

Giratina brought her to one of the houses and stopped before it. There was nothing remarkable about the home other than a thin network of ivy clinging to one of the walls.

"No one is living in this particular cottage," Giratina stated as he let go of Glace. "If you truly want, you can make this your new home. I'm sure the neighboring mortals would welcome you with open arms."

"And you're certain that no one lives here?" she asked.

"Ketetetet, I don't think you need me to answer that question," he snickered.

Glace grumbled to herself before walking up to the house and carefully opening the door. Just as Giratina had said, no one resided in the home. There was a bed that looked exactly like Glace's old bed on the far side of the house, but that was the only furniture in the entire house. The rest of the house was completely empty.

She stepped inside of the house and carefully looked around. It truly did look like her old house on the inside; she could tell where she used to have all of her belongings. Was this really an alternate universe? How was she to know that her home wasn't merely robbed in her absence? She even thought she saw marks on the floor where her table used to sit.

"Does anyone I used to know exist in this dimension?" Glace asked.

"There are a few mortals that are similar to the ones that you were once acquainted with," he answered. "I believe your co-workers are borderline identical to the ones here."

"And if I see them, they won't recognize me? Something strange won't happen like them getting memories from the Pokémon in my dimension?"

"Ketetetetet, no, they won't. Mortals have no connections to other versions of themselves."

"And… there's no version of me here in this dimension, right?"

"You are a spawn, Glace. You do not have any other versions of yourself. You only have other spawn that take on entirely different forms in other realities. You do not exist anywhere else. You are the only Glace in all of the realities."

Glace gave the house another quick look, and then shut the door. She could easily make this her home, she knew that. It wouldn't be that difficult to rebuild her life in this dimension. However, she wanted to see if Giratina was being completely truthful.

She unceremoniously wandered away from the cottage and headed for the dojo. Giratina didn't seem to be following her anymore, but she knew that wasn't true. He was always following her even when he wasn't present in the real world. He was still watching her every move from within her mind.

Many minutes later, Glace came across the dojo. Now that she was actually standing before it, she could see that there was a small variance between her dojo and this dimension's version of it; the banners no longer had snarling Luxray embroidered into the fabric. Instead, they were Seviper baring their fangs, coiled and ready to strike. It was such a tiny, almost unremarkable difference, but it still made a nervous tremor go through Glace's claws.

The Weavile took a deep breath and entered the dojo. She was relieved to find that the interior of the training center was exactly the same. There were still seven makeshift doors covered with drapes, all that same faded red color she had grown acquainted to. Then in the very back of the dojo was the leisure room. She could see a few Pokémon gathered in the room from where she was, but she couldn't determine what species they were. All of their bodies and colors seemed to merge together into a disjointed amalgamation.

Glace took a deep breath, and then crept down the hall and into the back room. When she was right before the doorway, she was finally able to see all the Pokémon. And just like Giratina had assured, quite a few of the Pokémon actually did look like her old co-workers. She didn't remember any of their names, as they had never been important to her, but she did recognize their behaviors. There was the Monferno trainer sitting at one of the tables and soaking up the sunlight peeking in through a window. He was quite a lazy and lax instructor and Glace never understood how he was able to keep his position.

Then there was the Liepard affectionately nuzzling a blue-ringed Umbreon in the corner of the room. Those two were mates and acted as a team in their training sessions. They offered team building exercises, which had always been rather popular from the number of duos Glace saw coming in and out of the dojo every day. Then finally there was the Malamar that Glace never liked, eating a helping of Remoraid at one of the tables. Glace never liked her. Even though that Malamar never said anything spiteful, Glace hated the way she looked at everyone with a condescending glimmer in her eyes, like she was silently prying into everyone's thoughts and judging them for all their shortcomings.

But at the same time, there were a few Pokémon that Glace didn't recognize however. For instance, there was a Serperior who now slithered out of the room and disappeared into one of the training areas. Then there were a Ribombee and Floette buzzing around, both being so small that Glace could barely even see them.

Even more, as Glace explored the rest of the dojo, she realized that she couldn't find Mar anywhere. She peered into every room, but he wasn't in a single one. She considered that maybe the Marowak wasn't working today or running an errand, but she knew the truth deep down. The only co-worker she had ever talked to didn't exist in this version of her home. She hadn't liked him that much, but her heart still grew heavy at the very thought.

"Can I help you?"

Glace snapped her gaze to her side to find the Monferno standing there. She couldn't help but fret that he would recognize her even though she didn't exist in this dimension. Her innards churned as he looked over her carefully.

"Hey Weavile, you okay?" the Monferno asked as he poked her shoulder.

Glace reflexively swatted his finger away with a claw. He flinched as he withdrew his hand and promptly backpedaled.

"I didn't mean to do that," Glace said, lowering her claw. "You startled me."

"Hey it's okay, you didn't hurt me," the Monferno said with a soft smile. "So no harm done right?"

"Yeah… that's right."

"Well anyway, what brings you here? Were you interested in training with one of our instructors?"

"I was just looking around. I'm… I'm new to town."

Glace almost wished that Sonata would start talking again, just so she could help her through the situation. Sonata might have been quirky and much too chatty, but she at least knew how to interact with Pokémon better than Glace could.

But for whatever reason, Sonata wouldn't respond. She remained silent and hidden away in the darkest reaches of Glace's mind.

"Oh, well then nice to have a new face around," the Monferno said with a smile. "May I have your name?"

"It's Glace," she said apprehensively.

She waited for the moment that he would say that the name sounded familiar, or that he felt he had seen her from somewhere else. And if he did that, then he would probably ask her where she used to be from. That's what he had done the first time they met, the nosy Monferno that he was. Glace felt that he had done this to everyone in the dojo, butting into their business whenever he heard something interesting.

If he was the same Monferno, then he would undoubtedly do the same now in this new dimension.

"Glace huh?" he asked. "Well that's an interesting name. My name's Calamar. I'm one of the instructors here."

"So you are," Glace said impassively, bracing herself for the intrusive questions that were to come.

"I am," he said pleasantly. "Been here for five years now. Nice little town, let me tell you. You're really going to like it here. Everyone's very friendly and close-knit."

"I can tell. It's a small town."

"Yeah, it is. But that's what I like about this place. You get all the quiet that you can't get in the big cities."

Calamar gave Glace a quick glance-over. The Weavile resisted the urge to raise her claws.

"Say, would you like me to show you around?" the Monferno then asked. "I don't have any students for a little while. I could show you the whole dojo if you really want. I can even introduce you to all of the instructors. I think they wouldn't mind talking to you for just a few moments."

Glace didn't know how to respond to that. Why wasn't he asking her about her life? Why was he being this way?

"I think you'd make a fine student, if I do say so myself," Calamar said with a smile. "You already hold a good stance. I don't think I could knock you over so easily if I wanted to."

"No… it's fine," Glace said after a moment of deliberation. "I've seen everything I need to see…"

With that, Glace slipped past Calamar and hurried out of the dojo. She couldn't find it in her to keep talking to that Monferno. He was a Pokémon she technically knew… but at the same time, he was a stranger. He wasn't acting the same way as he did before. Because of that, she couldn't even begin to figure out how she actually wanted to treat him.

She didn't remember the walk back to the empty cottage. She only knew that one moment she was walking away from the dojo, and then next moment, she was sitting on the bed. She dangled her legs off the side as she stared off into a wall.

"Welcome back, Glace."

Glace turned her head and immediately jolted back. There sitting beside her was Giratina, once again a Weavile. He still wore that awful grin as he swung his legs back and forth.

"You're having quite the reaction to this dimension," Giratina snickered. "It's deeply amusing to me."

Glace shot the Weavile a glare, but didn't bother to berate him. She only sat back down with a sigh and looked down at her claws.

"This dimension doesn't feel right," Glace said. "It looks the same and some of the same Pokémon are here, but…"

"No two realities can ever be exactly the same," Giratina stated impassively. "Realities are exactly like narratives; no two are alike. There will never be a dimension that is exactly like the one you lived in."

"I didn't think it would feel so surreal," Glace admittedly ruefully. "I thought that I'd adapt easily and that I could pretend that I never left. But this dimension doesn't feel right. The differences are small, but they feel so unnatural to me."

"Just as how every reality should make you feel. You don't belong to any of them. You never have. Not even the dimension you lived in was yours."

Glace frowned. She wanted to tell Giratina that she actually did belong to her old dimension, but she realized that was a lie. Never in her life did she feel that she had a true place to be. Even as one of the huntresses for her clan, she was never happy with her role. She had always felt empty inside. She had always blamed that on the fact that she was a Whiteout, but now she started to wonder if there was a deeper reason for it.

"I don't want to keep finding the other fragments," Glace said after a moment. "I don't want to lose more and more of myself with every fragment I find."

"As I said before, you are not obligated to," Giratina assured. "I will find that other spawn that you sent off into the other realities. It might take some time, but eventually one of my masks will find her. If you want to remain here until it's time to be assimilated, then fine. I will not force you to do anything."

"But why?" Glace asked. "Why are you letting me do that? I thought you put yourself into me so that you could help me with any challenges I'd be facing. But now you're telling me I'm allowed to stop everything and let Jera take care of everything."

"Because I've finally realized something that I could only see for myself after spending enough time in your mind and feeling all of your emotions."

"And what would that be?"

" _That you are weak."_

Glace felt something sharp stab into her chest. She found herself paralyzed before the godly being as he turned to face her completely with a deep scowl that made her claws tremble.

"You are a feeble spawn," he told her with a low tone. "You lack the strength to traverse the other realities and partake in the unknowns of the vast multiverse. You can handle physical struggles with ease, but when something attacks your mind or heart, you crumble. You cower away and flee into solitude. If you reacted so poorly to Yore's mind temporarily merging with yours, then you're not fit to keep searching for the others. You won't be able to handle what happens if you continue to assimilate the others."

"What is going to happen to me if I find the others…?" Glace asked carefully.

"You will forget," Giratina answered solemnly. "Glace will slowly cease to exist. Little by little you'll lose your memories. With each spawn you find, you will lose more and more of your identity until you can no longer remember your name. You won't even remember why you are finding the others. All you will know is that you _must_ find them for a reason you cannot explain. You will be nothing more than a mindless animal following one instinct and one instinct alone."

Glace's body turned cold. She could still remember forgetting who she was when she was in Yore's dimension. She had been so sure that she had been Yore the entire time. And yet, she had known her name was Glace. She could still remember that she was a Weavile and mostly still acted like herself. Not only that, but the mental synchronization didn't last for too long. It had only truly taken effect when she was at Yore's old guild.

But to imagine that she could forget _everything,_ including her own personality…

"That is why I will find this Jera instead and have her find the others," Giratina went on. "I would prefer it if you would find the spawn, but not if you're this weak. You'll be nothing but a detriment. I said I would aid you, but I don't have the patience to deal with your feebleness."

Glace shirked and dug her clawtips into her legs. She didn't want to admit that Giratina was right. She wanted to say that she was far stronger than he gave her credit for. But she knew the truth. It nagged at her, refusing to be buried until a mountain of lies and justifications.

She was weak. She was giving up when it was only the beginning.

"You will adapt to this reality eventually," Giratina said as he got up from the bed. "Eventually you will weave together a narrative that you always belonged here. That's always what the mind does when it wants to retain its sanity. Perhaps your mind will even force you to forget about me."

"But what about Sonata and Yore?" Glace asked. "They're still here in my mind…"

"They are," Giratina admitted. "However, I silenced them. Your mind might be able to create a new narrative, but it cannot quiet their voices. Consider what I did a mercy you don't deserve."

The god raked his claws through the air and tore open a dimensional rift. He took a step into the portal.

"Giratina, wait," Glace called.

He stopped and glanced over at Glace, half of his face deep into the vortex. Glace thought she saw the hundreds of mouths covering his face again, but she ignored it. She couldn't let that distract her.

She looked at him straight in the eye as she got to her feet. He was watching her carefully, waiting in curious anticipation. She mustered up all of the strength she had and finally spoke.

"Giratina… I'm not going to stay here," she said, her voice still quieter than she would have liked it to be. "I'm going to find the others."

The male's expression didn't change, but he didn't disappear into the portal. He continued to stare at Glace, waiting patiently in between dimensions.

"I want to give up," Glace admitted. "I don't like the idea that I'm going to lose myself with every fragment I merge with. But… I don't think I can live with myself if I do. It doesn't feel right to stay here. I don't know if it's because I don't want to admit I'm weak or because I just don't feel I belong here, but I can't stay here."

"What will you do then when you assimilate another spawn and lose traces of your identity?" Giratina asked flatly. "It will happen. You cannot avoid that fate."

"I know," Glace said.

"Are you going to flee again?" he asked.

"… no, I'm not," Glace answered. "I'm going to see everything through. I'm going to find every last fragment."

Glace knew she was lying to herself. She knew that she still lacked the true conviction to stay strong even when her mind stopped becoming her own. But she needed to do this. She needed to find the fragments. She couldn't stay in this dimension and disgrace her former self. She needed to do her own part in gathering up all the others.

Giratina stepped out of the portal and closed it up. Glace saw that he was wearing that evil smile again. And although she always hated it, there was something particularly off about it now. Something that she couldn't name, and it made her very soul shudder.

"Ketetetetet, very well then," Giratina said as his eyes glimmered with otherworldly zeal. "Let's see if you truly can handle what is to come, or succumb to the deepest despair…"


End file.
